Shattered
by DrakeTheTraveller
Summary: After a freak accident at Beltino labs Alexander Von Jäger (Axel) is saved from death and hurled into a different universe. He is a broken man. Can Krystal and the others fix him or will he give up. But the real question is, what did he bring with him? COMPLETE!
1. Chapter 1

Shattered

Chapter I

Fox hated mornings. His wrist communicator began to buzz angrily from its resting place on the end table next to his bed aboard The Great Fox. He tiredly pressed the button "Fox here." He yawned his muzzle still pressed into his pillow.

"Fox this is General Pepper." The old bloodhound said as his voice emanated from the small wrist device.

"Pepper, sir what can I do for you today?" Fox mumbled as he looked to the digital clock on his nightstand. 'Huh it's 7:30 that's a little early for a normal call'. Fox thought to himself.

"I have a job for you, double the standard pay." Pepper offered.

"Double standard pay! Why so much?" Fox inquired.

"I need you and your crew to go to Beltino Industries and provide security for the demonstration of a revolutionary leap in teleporter technology."

"Teleport tech?"

"Yes if this demo goes off without a hitch we might might be able to send living things through the teleporter matrices."

"Really." Fox muttered as he thought of the ramifications.

"Indeed, I don't think I have to tell you all the military and economical applications."

"No you don't sir, I'll take the job. When do you need us to be there?" Fox asked already getting out of bed and preparing.

"You have two hours, a car will be waiting at the starport." Pepper replied before he ended the call.

After talking with Pepper Fox spent little time getting ready for the day before rushing out of his quarters and into the hallway. "ROB," he spoke in to his wrist comm. "Wake up the others and tell them to meet me on the bridge."

"ORDERS RECEIVED." The monotone tone of the ships robot replied.

With that taken care of Fox sped on to the bridge and sat down in his captains chair. He waited for half an hour before the others finally decide to show.

The first person to walk in was Falco. The blue and red avian swaggered into the bridge before sitting down at the tactical console and putting his boot clad feet on it. "Sup Fox."

"What took so long!" Fox growled.

"I was sleeping and I can't be rushed." Falco scoffed.

"Well I guess you don't want to go on the next job for double pay." Fox sighed before turning away.

"DOUBLE PAY!" Why didn't you say so Falco exclaimed. "Let's go!"

"Do you even know where?" Fox asked his over enthusiastic friend.

"No but with that kind of pay it doesn't matters." Falco said stubbornly.

While they were having a friendly argument Slippy and Peppy walked in and took their seats ignoring the pairs antics as they had grown accustomed to it in their long friendship.

"So..." Slippy drawled grabbing the vulpine's attention "what's the plan Fox?"

Fox and Falco stopped their bickering and went back to business. "Pepper hired us as security for a demonstration at your fathers company."

"Really I get to see dad!" Slippy said excitedly.

"That's right Slippy, although I expect you to act professionally." Fox warned.

"Of course Fox I'll be the professionalist."

"Thats not a real word." Falco scoffed.

"Cut it out Falco." Peppy scolded.

At that the blue vixen Krystal walked. She was a tall lithe vixen with a long luxurious fluffy tail and long ears. Her emerald green eyes looked as if they could peer into your mind...which of course they could. She was a telepath from the destroyed world of Cerinian. Fox found her on Sauria and saved her. They have been family ever since.

"Hey guys." She greeted in her velvety soft voice.

"Hey Krys." Fox said. "Glad to see your up.

"Yes well even though I need my beauty sleep I came because you called."

"That's good to hear I have news, Pepper has just given me our next contract." He informed his friends, Falco already aware. "It's at Beltino Industries."

"Well then when do we leave?" Krystal asked.

"The Great Fox is already heading to the starport and Pepper has a hovercar waiting for us when we land." He said laying out the plan.

"GREAT FOX DOCKING AT CORNERIA CENTRAL STARPORT." ROB announced, causing them to turn around and watch as the ship glided into port.

Corneria was a world covered in swaths of skyscrapers and apartment complexes. The wooded outskirts were home to the small residential communities for the people who disliked city life. The viewport moved as the ship aligned with its approach vector and they got a good look at the starport.

The starport was home to hundreds of ships that varied from small personal leisure craft to the huge military vessels grounded for repairs and maintenance. The Great Fox landed inbetween a small cornerian corvette and a carrier. After the ship lowered its landing gear and gracefully came to a stop ROB informed them that they had landed.

"All right guys let's get moving. We don't want to keep the general waiting." Fox ordered as he ushered them to the exit ramp. A few minutes later they found themselves standing outside of their ship to see a low hovering black car with tinted windows. Two lightly armored wolves were standing beside it with their arms crossed in front of them all in black and with tinted sunglasses. The pockets on their uniforms bulged ever so slightly with the buts of concealed weapons.

"Mccloud?" The one on the right asked.

"Yep legendary merc Fox Mccloud right here." Fox answered.

"Good please step into the vehicle." The one on the left said gesturing to a door he had just opened.

A little phased that they were so blunt the team quickly piled into he car. One of the wolves got in the back with them and the other started to drive.

"So...what's with all the secrecy?" Fox asked the wolf looked to him eyes hidden ebbing the shades he was still wearing.

"The teleporter prototype is a heavily guarded secret amongst the higher echelons of the government If any potential enemy were to get ahold of the device the repercussions would be...catastrophic."'the wolf answered swiftly and with little emotion.

"I see." Fox said seriously.

Slippy ever the chatterbox asked "so sir what's your name?"

The wolf directed his obscured gaze to the toad. Slippy began to squirm in his seat involuntarily. "My code name is Wraith, my real name can not be disclosed. It would put my family at risk."

"Oh...okay." Slippy muttered awkwardly. His awkwardness permeated the cabin and cut any hope for conversation as the hovercar sped to its destination barely obeying the laws of the skylanes.

Forty minutes later they were dropped off in front of Beltino Industries. With out delay Fox and the others went inside. At the front desk sat a thin doe in a secretaries outfit. "Welcome to Beltino Industries, where we make the impossible, possible. How can I help you today?" She asked in a cheery and energetic voice. Her name plate read Mary.

"Well Mary we are here to see Mr. Beltino." Fox answered.

"Ah Mr Fox Mccloud I have been informed of your arrival right this way please." The energetic doe motioned for them to follow her. She lead them down several corridors until they reached an elevator. They all crammed uncomfortably into a elevator that was only supposed to house four. Several close spaced minutes later the elevator opened with a ding. Judging by the time and movement of the elevator they were very deep below the surface. Mary took them to a room at the far end of the hallway and opened the door with a keycard. As she moved aside to let them in she said "Beltino is inside, goodbye." She turned around and walked back down the hallway until they lost sight of her. Looking at each other they walked inside.

The scientific amphibian was sitting at a large monitor with four assistants of varying race. Standing at the observation room was none other then General Pepper himself. Slippy ran over to his father while the rest went to join the aged bloodhound in the room. They walked into the room and took seats at the long white table placed in the middle of the room. "Welcome we've been waiting for you to arrive."

"We got here as soon as we could general." Fox defended.

"No worries Fox, I was just saying its good for you to be here."

"I don't mean to be rude general but why do you need starfox to provide security? You have plenty of soldiers up to the task." Falco questioned.

"They may be good soldiers but I trust you more." He answered.

"Thanks for the trust sir we won't let you down." Fox said who a smile.

"I'm sure you won't Fox, I'm sure you won't." Then all the guys started to talk amongst themselves. Krystal not wanting to be a part of the conversation wandered back down into the actual room that the scientists and Slippy were in and noticed Slippy talking with his father and decided to go to them.

"Wow so the particles fuse back together to recreate the original copy!" Slippy exclaimed with surprise.

"Yes so you see th-oh hello Krystal how nice of you to drop bye." Beltino addressed her as she made her presence known.

"Hey Krystal how it going?" Slippy added.

"Just fine, I wanted to see the machines thats all." She said while looking around at all the strange devices spread throughout the massive lab. She could see Fox and Pepper taking to each other in the observatory above them.

"That's nice, although we are about to start the machine Beltino said gesturing to the large spiral shaped object in the middle of he room.

"Oh please could I stay down here? I want to see it all up close." She pleaded.

"I don't know..." Beltino said unconvinced until he got hit full blast by the eyes of supplication she beaned him with. "Alright I don't see the harm in it." He said as he caved into her demand.

"yay!" She yipped excitedly happy tail rapidly swinging back and forth since her plan had worked.

"But you're going to have to move to the side with Slippy." He warned her.

"That's fine." Krystal replied as Slippy and herself moved so that they would no longer be in the way. Then they watched as Beltino and his assistants started the test.

"Beginning power transfer." A rabbit women said as she pressed a couple buttons on the computer in front of her.

"Power reaching max peak." The male lion assistant said from his corner of the room.

"Okay power at nominal levels and system reads one hundred percent functionality, beginning test." Beltino warned from his place at his monitor.

The spiraled device began to spin slowly and Krystal could see energy crackle as it flowed around the device.

"System reports green and all capacitors are running smoothly." The lion informed. "Initiating teleporter matrix."

The device spun faster and a loud noise began to leak into the air from the thing. "It's working sir! The teleporter in active!" the male bluejay at the main console reported loudly over the noise being generated by the object. "...wait something's wrong the field is fluctuating!" The bluejay yelled. "It's going to collapse!"

Krystal was by this time panicking as the room began to build up static charge and her fur started to stand up straight. Slippy was taking cover under a console so she joined him.

"It's going critical!" The lion warned before diving into cover. Just as the last person took cover there was a blinding flash of light and the room shook violently. After some time the shaking stopped and the light died down. Son the room was silent.

Ever the curios one Krystal was the first one out of hiding. She crawled out from under the ruined table and walked over to the device cautiously. It looked melted, as if it was out under a giant magnifying glass in the sun. It was glowing cherry hot and was dripping molten steel onto the tiled floor. She got closer to the object before she saw a flash of movement. Without warning she felt strong armored gauntlets wrap around her neck and pull her to the owners chest. She screamed in fear and could hear fox shout and running footsteps. She tried to struggle but she couldn't budge an inch. She tried a different tactic, she attempted to attack the assailants mind. She stopped her own attack. For when she tried to invade the persons mind all she could see was glowing symbols in a dark room. She didn't know what it meant but it made her feel sick and afraid.

"PUT HER DOWN!" She heard fox roar at the unknown attacker. She then felt the cold steel of a long serrated dagger press against her throat. This made her cry. She cried with big watery tears as she though she was about to die. Suddenly her captor released her. Confused she turned to face her temporary jailer. Standing in front of her was a very tall humanoid in segmented black armor. It was wearing some strange pendent that looked allot like the machine that had exploded. The helmet was fully concealing except for the vertical red glowing slits. They angled down slightly like an extended V. The armor the being was wearing had a strange patch on the side of its shoulder that read S.C.A.F. It was holding onto what must have been a pistol of some kind with a long barrel and a cylinder in he middle. She thought she heard a voice say "monsters don't cry."

"Get on the floor!" Fox shouted again pointing his blaster at the things head. Slowly Fox moved forward and grabbed Krystal's hand and dragged her behind him. By this time everyone else had either regained consciousness or came down from the observation room. Standing next to fox was General Pepper and Falco. Falco had his blaster out and pointing at the thing as well Pepper just looked at it curiously. The scientists and Peppy were in the back.

"I said get on the floor!" Fox shouted again.

The tall creature just stared at them. Without warning it fell to its knees dropped its gun which fell to the floor with an ominous bang and put its head in its hands. Then it spoke. "They're all dead." The thing whispered in a male voice. "I couldn't save them. I promised them I would, I promised." It (or now a he) sounded like he was on the verge of tears.

The others now watched this menacing apparition whisper softly to himself. Krystal looked at her strange captor he looked so sad it broke her heart.

Fox and Falco had lowered their blasters and fox, being a nice guy walked, to the man. "Hey...are you alright?" he asked softly.

The man stopped talking to himself, and slowly reached for his gun. Fox halted his steps forward and got ready to pull his out. The mysterious man picked up his gun and ponderously brought it up. Fox was about to draw when he saw the man counting to raise his gun until the barrel rested under the chin of his helmet. They all looked on horrified. "Sir put the gun down." Fox said quietly.

The mans helmet turned to look Fox directly in the eye. "I failed them." He whispered before pulling the trigger.

"NOOO!" Fox shouted as he vainly tried to stop him in time.

CLICK

There was a soft click and Fox stopped. The man with the gun withdrew it from under his helm and looked at it. Soon afterwards it fell from numb fingers and hit the floor once more with a bang. The armored figure just sat there quietly not moving an inch. "Kill me." They heard him say after a minute "please just end it all."

Fox had a sad look on his face that was also on everyone else's. "In sorry I can't." Fox said. The figure sighed got up and walked over to fox and stuck his arms out. Getting the message fox grabbed his hands and put them behind the guys back. Moments later a security team came and picked him up. They dragged the unresponsive man out into the hallway. Krystal stood with the others who hadn't moved yet. All she could think about was the stranger.


	2. Chapter 2

Shattered

Chapter II

Krystal was sitting down on a cold plastic composite chair inside a spartan room. The room was fairly large with silvery metal sheeted walls. It had a one-way mirror peering into the adjacent interrogation chamber where the mysterious tall armored stranger resided. Fox and the other team members were in the room with her alongside General Pepper. Since nothing had happened yet she began to rerun the incident in her mind.

She thought back to when he had put a knife to her throat. It felt like she was going to die so she had cried. He had surprisingly let her go, this was one of the things that kept bothering her. Then the most distressing thing was his attempted suicide. She had never in her life seen someone try to kill themselves. Even though she had not seen his face she could feel the sadness, anger, and despair radiating off of him. She was filled with questions that buzzed around in her mind like a swarm of katinian hornets. Where did he come from? Why did he let her go? Was he even a lylatian? And perhaps the most important question, what was that she saw in his mind?

Her mental debate was ended when she saw Bill Grey, a bull dog and long time friend of Fox, walk into the interrogation room. She observed as he started his 'interview'.

"Who are you?" Bill demanded taking a seat across from the intimidating armored figure.

The strange armored man who had been relieved of any visible weapons tore his gaze off of the table he sat in front of and looked unsettlingly through his red glowing helmet slits at Bill. "Alexander Von Jäger." The man replied in a deep voice. They took note of his foreign name.

"Alright then Alexander," Bill said "How did you get here and why?"

The man (now Alexander) took a minute to respond. Presumably to arrange his thoughts. "I don't know." He answered finally.

"What do you mean you don't know?" Bill wondered.

"I should be dead." Alexander emotionlessly replied.

This startled Bill and the other viewers, especially Krystal.

"Why?"

"I...rather not say." He refused, his concealing helmet hiding any telling facial expression he could have made.

Sensing that he can't get a read on his captive Bill had an idea. "Take of your helmet." He ordered.

"I would like to keep it on." Alexander mumbled quietly.

"I wasn't asking." Bill said darkly.

With a defeated sigh the man lifted his left arm to the back of his neck. They heard a faint clink and the helmet began to vent air in a loud hiss. They watched in fascination as the helmet slowly burst and separated into a cascade of metal plates that folded back gently and swiftly into the man's gorget to reveal an alien face.

He was definitely not a lylatian Krystal and the others concluded. He was faintly simian with a strong jaw line. He had light brown skin that lacked any age lines. (He could only be twenty five years old at most). The most distinguishing feature he had was his golden eyes. They seemed to glow softly in the dimly lit room. He only sported fur on his head. He had very short buzz cut headfur and a very thin beard. It all just screamed military.

Bill looked surprised, his muzzle was hanging open in disbelief. "What are you?"

"A human." Alexander answered as if it was the most obvious thing in the universe. "What are you?"

"A cornerian." Bill replied similarly.

"Strange." Alexander muttered to himself.

Bill tried to redirect the conversation on to the original line of questioning. "Where are you from?"

"The ark."

"What is that?"

Alexander's expression fell. "It was the last hope for my race."

They all picked up on the key word.

"Was?" Bill asked.

"Yes was, it was destroyed along with the remnants of my people." Alexander said sadly, eyes shining with unshed tears.

Krystal was surprised, there was someone else who knew what she was going through. What it was like to lose everyone and everything you have ever known. She may be scared of him still, but now she wanted to talk to him.

She started to pay allot more attention to the two men conversing in the other room. "What happened?" Bill asked, he was curious and no doubt so were the others.

"It is a rather long tale." Alexander warned, " and not without sorrow."

"I'm sorry to ask but we have to know." Bill said sincerely, "maybe it can help us understand how you got here."

Alexander became quiet for a couple of minutes. They could see the fierce internal struggle withering openly on his face. He came to a decision, "I don't want to tell you but I will. I can explain most and I can show you the rest, but I must warn you it is not for the faint of heart." He said ominously.

"How can you show us?"

Alexander motioned pointed to his back and turned slightly to reveal a blue glowing device trailing up his spine. "This is resource integration gear or as my people used to call it a rig. It is a integrated health management and strength augmentation device. It can guide its user to locations, store equipment in its digitizer, has several modules installed, and can display videos using these," he gestured to two rectangular objects on his wrists.

In the other room the Pepper and Fox were talking. "That is a interesting piece of tech." Fox remarked.

"Indeed that is something our soldiers could use." Pepper agreed. "We will have to take a look at it as soon as possible."

"Are you just gonna take it from him?" Krystal asked Fox.

"No of course not!" Fox replied indignantly.

"Well then what if he doesn't want to give it up?" Krystal retorted.

This made Fox think. Why would he give it to another race of people he had only just run into. "I'm sure that we could convince him." He said without confidence.

"Riiiight." Krystal said sarcastically.

The next thing that Alexander said grabbed everyone's attention. "Before you see the playback recording allow me to lay down the important details. My people lived on many planets scattered throughout all the known systems. One day on earth or you could say homeworld, archeologists found a artifact. It was a massive black obelisk. It looked like this," he showed them his necklace that was tucked into his gorget. It suspiciously resembled the teleporter that malfunctioned. "They called it the marker. It was a nearly limitless source of energy. So without any real understanding my government The Sovereign Colonies figured out how to build them and constructed them at all the inner colonies. After a few years something happened. The original or 'black marker' made its move."

"It was alive?" Bill asked incredulously.

"Yes I don't know how or why but it was, and it had a plan. You see it didn't just give power, it exuded a undetectable signal. That signal once activated reanimated all the corpses in a certain radius."

In the observation room Falco was having a fit. "Bullshit ain't no way that a stupid piece of rock could raise the freakin dead!" The others didn't voice it but had similar doubts.

Meanwhile Alexander was obliviously continuing his story, Bill had stopped asking questions and was intently paying attention.

"Without warning the signal activated. In no time at all any nearby bodies changed. These monstrosities would attack and kill any living thing they stumbled across until nothing remained. After a certain amount of bodies had accumulated something called convergence would occur. At critical mass the monsters or necromorphs as they were called would all gather near the marker on the planet. They would the fuse their collective mass to create a celestial satellite, or moon."

This time Falco really lost it. "Oh so now they all just mash together to turn into a fucking moon! Now I've really heard it all!" The avian raved unbelievingly.

"It does sound a little far fetched." Slippy muttered.

Peppy ever the wiseman said "it does sound a little fantastical, but I don't see how he could make this all up or why." Fox and Pepper agreed with Peppy and Krystal was to busy listening to comment.

"Then the newly formed entity would target other planets. Initially our forces seemed sufficient enough to stop them. Our navy could after spending a staggering amount of ammunition destroy a moon. Tragically it took us to long to organize a response. By the time we were ready there were too many moons to effectively fight. Another fact that took to long to grasp was that for every man, women, child, and infant we lost they gained a new killing machine. We were dying out collectively as a species while the monsters slowly filled their ranks with our fallen. At one point we realized we lost. I was seventeen when the brass made an impossible choice. I was overseeing the evacuation of Regulas IV when the order came to split the remainder of our ragged military into two separate entities. One would stay to delay the tide of necrotic creatures, the other would gather all the civilians they could and flee to the farthest corner of the galaxy. This was called operation Pheonix. By the luck of the draw I was chosen to be the part of the evacuating army. I had to say goodbye to allot of my friends."

He halted his long monologue and seemed to be reliving past memories. He must have realized he spent too long remembering. He cleared his throat, "uuhm anyways we fell back to a hastily but sturdily built spacestation, the ark. For four years we lived at the edge of known existence trying to eke out a life away from those things. It wasn't meant to last. Two days ago one of the moons by some twisted luck stumbled upon out home."

"What happened?" Bill asked.

"I will show you what happened." Alexander sighed sadly as he activated the holo emitter on his right wrist. He pressed a series of buttons and the video started.


	3. Chapter 3

Shattered

Chapter III

It began with Alexander sitting inside a small briefing room full of heavily armored soldiers. The room was bustling with activity as the men readied themselves for battle. He was in the front row as another armored human, this one was in blue and orange armor with a nameplate that read Marcus, stood in front of him. "Listen up marines, the necros have found our last refuge. I'm gonna be honest with you. We are all dead men." He confirmed matter of factly. "We can not stop them, but I'll be damned if we don't take as many of the bastards as we can with us." That got a resounding oohrah from the assembled jarheads. "Our job will be to get the civvies to the escape craft. Even though we will fall we will assure the survival of our species."

"Squad leaders you will gather your men and place them in strategic locations." He pointed at the holomap behind him. "You will be defending those zones and assisting the mobile units in evacuating as many people as you can. I am not asking you to do anything I won't. I will be leading the defense at the breach. I will not be coming back. So as of now tactical command will be transferred to Jäger who will activate the final contingency. That is all, good luck men, see you on the other side." The commanders helmet sealed and he walked over to Alexander flanked by his bodyguards.

Before he got half way Alexander intercepted him worriedly. "Commander I am not a leader! Why did you pick me?" He asked looking around to see if any one was paying attention. They were all too busy preparing to notice.

"Son I picked you because you are. I saw the after action report for the massacre on Talivon. You took command of the scattered forces and destroyed the marker facility."

"I led those men to their deaths!" Alexander whispered heatedly.

"Yes and you will do it again here! We are not going to win this fight, But we will save as many innocents as we can! I don't need a sentimental man I need one who is strong enough to sacrifice everything to get the job done!" The commander finished loudly grabbing the attention of everyone in the room. Then he firmly grabbed Alexander's shoulder. "I know this is hard, but your not the only suffering. We have an obligation to our people. You will do this!" The commanders eyes looked ragged and desperate. He was at the end of his rope.

"Yes sir I understand." He replied forlornly.

"Thank you, and Jäger, die well." With that the commander left the room. Alexander stood there staring at the closed door. (they speculated he was thinking on his situation.) Suddenly a young voice spoke from behind him.

"Hey bro congratulations on your promotion!"

He turned to see a white and blue armored figure standing their with a rifle in his hands. "Santiago I'll never understand you." He said with a smile in his voice.

The man laughed. "Yeah well I don't either." They embraced each other.

"It's good to see you brother." Alexander whispered sadly.

"Haha yeah you to, I just wish it was under better circumstances." They let each other go.

"So do I," Alexander agreed. "What squad are you in?"

"You know Daniel," Alexander nodded. "I was assigned to him."

"Daniel is a good guy. Listen to him and you'll live longer, I'm sorry Santi but I got to go I have to manage the defense." They grabbed each other's right forearms tightly. "Brothers till the end." They said in unison before letting go. Santiago left and Alexander turned to the holomap.

The map displayed all the rigs of active soldiers and their locations. Currently they were all in holdout positions. The commander's rig showed that he was in the outermost engineering bay. The left wall glowed a infectious red signifying a hull breach. He was surrounded by other rigs and from the looks of it they were holding the line. Ten minutes later the rig positioning system showed them falling back slowly. "Marcus sir what's your situation?"

He could barely hear the broken reply through all the gunfire and inhuman screeching. "Fal...ack t...many regrouping at sec...ary position."

"Copy sending reinforcements," he contacted another squad. "Maria your squad needs to move to the secondary fall back position outside engineering, how copy?"

"We copy sir, moving now." She answered. He watched as her squad moved to its new location. With the new arrivals they managed to halt the enemy.

"Jäger! We have another hull breach at the atrium!" A panicked voice shouted alarmingly. Quickly he focused on the atrium and sure enough it was glowing a dangerous red.

"Daniel I want you to take your squad get up their and plug that hole."

"Yes sir! We are on the way."

With a sigh Alexander leaned back into his chair. "Commander multiple breaches across the entire residential area, we can't contain them!" A terrified soldier yelled into his com. Gunfire and the screams of civilians plagued the communication. Acting fast he ordered two entire reserve units to head to residential. It was imperative that the civilians were protected. Then he got up, pressed something on his wrist and a rifle materialized in his hands.

"Hold this area at all costs!" He ordered the two men in the command station before he left to help the overwhelmed district. He ran as fast as he could down the light filled corridors.

He made it to the residential district to see absolute chaos. Like a tsunami the civilians fled in a giant mass of flailing limbs and inarticulate screams. He pushed through the crowd to a sergeant he spied out hopelessly trying to direct the mob.

"Sergeant what's the situation?"

"The damn necros got into the vents somehow and found a way into the district while we were evacuating the civvies. I lost my entire squad in the opening engagement. I managed to block the route into the courtyard buying us time but the fuckers will get through sooner rather then later." The beleaguered man answered rapidly.

"Listen closely I have contacted two units and they will get here as soon as possible. Until then it's up to us too defend these people." Alexander turned to the crowd.

"LISTEN UP!" He shouted loudly with enough authority to stop the mass of panicking humanity. "I want you all to move to the far end of the courtyard. The sergeant and I will be holding the necromorps at bay until reinforcements arrive. What I need is for the men of the families to keep everyone away from the fight."

The men in the crowd stepped up to regain order and get their families to safety. Shortly afterward there was a loud explosion and the sound of tumbling debris and gurgling wails. The necros had broken through the makeshift barricade. Alexander and the sergeant moved to the middle of the large courtyard to stand between the incoming necros and the helpless civilians.

Running around the corner came the first necro. It must have been a soldier before it was turned. It was covered in the armor of a S.C.A.F marine. Now a decaying beast it shambled towards them. It had two long bladed appendages bursting out of its putrid shoulders. Additionally it had two smaller arms poking out of its gutted stomach, the puny things grasped at the air ready for their next victim. As it moved to attack the two lone defenders it's entrails sloughed out of its chest cavity and lagged behind it, dragging the rancid organs across the cold steel of the floor. The guts leaving a slimy trail of putrescent rusty brown blood. It roared, the sound corrupted by the decayed hole filled bags that used to be its lungs, and charged towards them.

Two blue lights centered on its legs before the answering roar of lead hurtled to the necro. The bullets tore the legs into bits, and it smashed violently into the floor head first.

(Wait stop the video.)

The video stopped on the frame of the necromorph's broken body.

"What is it sir?" Warren asked. He didn't show it but he was relieved for the break from watching his past.

"Nothing, it's just that I just was informed that you are going to be relocated to an actual briefing room. The evidence shows that you are not lying. And since you are technically the representative of an alien race you should not be in an interrogation cell. Bill explained taking his hand away from his right ear.

"Alright then." Alexander said pressing a button on his wrist and closing the video. Bill stood up and opened the door for him. He walked out of the room and into the cold metal hallway.

As Bill led him to the new suitable location he heard a door open behind him and he saw the blue fox women he had grabbed walk out with a assortment of other animal people. The group consisted of an old looking bloodhound, a twitchy toad, an avian, another fox (this time orange), and a hare.

For some strange reason his eyes were drawn to the fox women. Sure she had a certain animalistic beauty, but it was something that he couldn't quite grasp that really drew him to her. She looked back into his gaze making him swiftly turn back around and continue to walk with the bull dog that had interrogated him. The last thing he needed right now was another thing to worry about. He had enough problems that he could not bear to focus on for fear of sparking new suicidal urges.

In short order his thought were interrupted when the bull dog opened a door and motioned for him to enter. He thanked the dog before walking in (no point in being rude he figured,) and walked to the large table at the center of the room and stood their waiting. Alexander was surprised to see the previous group walk in and take seats at the table.

"Now then," the dog began "since you are no longer a prisoner I think an exchange of names is in order. I am Bill Grey."

He then started to go around the table. "This is Fox Mccloud. (For some reason Alexander wasn't startled to see that Fox...was a Fox.) Falco Lombardi (once again unsurprisingly the bird) Slippy Toad (no comment) Peppy hare (seriously?) Krystal (the blue vixen) and finally General Pepper."

At the sound of general Alexander instinctively saluted the aging bloodhound with a fist to his chestplate. "Sir!"

The bloodhound looked amused. "At ease soldier." Alexander relaxed his posture. "We brought you here to finish your...informative video, discuss it, and plan you future." Pepper informed.

"Okay."

Pepper looked at him carefully. "Are you ready to finish it?"

Alexander almost had a flashback to the most terrible moment he had ever been through. "..I...am sir." It was obvious to everyone that he wasn't being completely truthful, but Pepper let it go.

"Alright then son...resume."

(He reactivated the holo device on his wrist. Taking a deep breath he started it up again.)

The now legless necromorph attempted to crawl at the two men before it was annihilated under a hail of hollow point 7.56mm caseless rounds.

The victory was short lived as the rest of the creature made their presence known. In mass the hoard of festering corpses of humanity ran, limped, crawled, and hopped to the two stalwart defenders. Not taking a step back they tirelessly fired into the hoard doing all they could to prevent hem from reaching the innocent people behind them. Soon the bodies began to pile up and the necros climbed over the rotten remains of their brethren to reach their prey.

Alexander's gun suddenly clicked empty. He was out of ammo. Not wasting a moment he dematerialized his rifle and replaced it with a strange blade. It had a single edge with blue light traveling up and down it. He brought it up in one motion to parry the incoming claw from one of the beasts. He rotated his wrist knocking it away and then slashes diagonally bisecting it neatly. He used his motion economically, not a single move was wasted. Each strike led up to a block. Every slash hit a target. In no time he had cleared a large area around himself of enemies. In that entire fight he had not stepped back once.

Bullets began to whiz past him and strike the surviving necromorphs. The reserves had made it. Elated that they had made it Alexander had turned to congratulate the sergeant. His words died in his mouth. The sergeant was impaled on the blades of three dead necros. He had died while shooting them and with a knife jammed into one of the monsters throats. Alexander sadly walked over to him and removed the offending blades. He then layer the body out on the floor. "Sir?" He heard a voice which he ignored.

Slowly he grabbed a specially designed grenade from the sergeant's chest he placed it back down pulled and walked backwards. Within moments the grenade burst into superheated flames that quickly burned the body. "Yes trooper?" He asked finally.

"What do we do now?"

"Get these civvies out of here and hold this position." He ordered.

"Yes sir! Right away." The soldier walked away to relay his command back to the others. After that Alexander had to make the long trek back to the command station. He returned and the two guards reported that nothing had happened during his absence. He thanked them and walked back to the holo map. It was not going well at all forty percent of the rigs had flatlined and multiple areas had been totally lost. He was worried for his friend. " Santiago come in."

"This is Santiago."

"Santiago I have a new assignment for you."

"What is it brother?"

"I want you to safeguard the civilian evacuation with Daniels squad and get in he ships with them, I promise i will get you all out of here."

"What about you? When are you coming with?"

"I...will not be joining you."

"What! Why?"

"I have to enact the last contingency 'Final Vengeance'."

"No! Can't you just get someone else to do it?"

"How could I ask that of anyone but myself?" Alexander retorted.

"I don't care! Just get someone else to. You should not have to!"

"Of course I do! It's my responsibility!"

Santiago went silent. "I had a feeling it would end like this." He said quietly.

"I think we both did, and brother good luck." Alexander cut the conversation and sat down dejectedly in the chair. The civilians were boarding the ships to salvation and all the soldiers were dying. It was poetic in a way.

The communications net was overflowing with the sounds of his men being slaughtered.

"STAY AWAY FROM ME AAAAGGGHHH!" The sound of blood splattering.

"RUN FALLBACK THEIR ARE TO MANY!" The terrified voices of once brave men and women now crying in fear and despair.

"OH GOD WERE SURROUNDED!"

"TO THE LAST MAN!" One brave soul shouted barely perceptible over the squealing of the necromorphs and the blaring of automatic weapons fire. Just like the other it went quiet eventually.

The last voice was the voice of commander Marcus. He probably gathered the last of the men and had one last stand.

By this time the two guards in the room with him had sealed all access points and took positions by their commanding officer. Loyal till the end.

"What are you names?" Alexander asked as he walked over to a console and put a code in revealing a keycard.

"Uh John and Derek sir. We're brothers." A young voice replied through a red helmet. Too young, he couldn't have been more then eighteen. These two should have been on the transport not about to be ripped to pieces by these goddamn abominations.

"Well john and Derek I would be honored to die by your side."

"The honor is ours sir."

Alexander picked up the keycard and inserted it into the slot on the side of the console. A pad slide out and he out in another code. "WARNING SELF DESTRUCT CODE ACTIVATED FIFTEEN MINUTES TILL DETONATION!" An automated voice warned.

"Well men let's die well."

That sat in silence for a minute before they could hear the screeching wails of the necromorphs as they closed in on the last living things in the station.

At least he could take comfort in the fact Santiago had made it out with the civilians. "Alexander!" A panicked voice shouted.

"Who is this?"

"This is Santiago! We can't get out of the station we've been fucking trapped!"

"What happened!"

"The damn things ambushed the auxiliary hanger they were waiting, we can't reach the ships! It's over!"

"No there must be a way humanity has to survive! Our race must not die!" Alexander shouted.

"I'm sorry brother there isn't I'm afraid this is it."

Alexander collapsed to his knees. It was over they had lost humanity would be eradicated and the necromorphs would reign over the galaxy. "No! If we are to die we will die fighting!"

"We will fight to the end brother." Santiago said.

"Until the end."

"Until the end." The call burst into static and was no more.

"TEN MINUTES UNTIL DETONATION!"

Alexander turned again to the two men with him. "Today I call you brothers. Until the end!"

"Until the end!" the two young men shouted with a heroic amount of courage.

Three minutes later the front reinforced door dented with a bang. They readied their weapons it was hit again and the hinged raddled. Two more minutes and the door would break.

"FIVE MINUTES UNTIL DETONATION!"

The door exploded and the undead poured through like a busted pipe. The three men fired their assault rifles into the swarm. At first the enemy was pushed back. For four minutes they fought with everything that had, Alexander was down to his pistol. It was not enough. Suddenly Derek yelled out in pain. He had been stabbed with a blades arm and dragged to the floor. His screams would haunt Alexander's dreams for the rest of his life. Enraged John pulled the pins on all of his grenades and tackled the bastard responsible for his brothers death. The ensuing explosion hurtled Alexander into the bomb he had activated and was knocked unconscious. The monsters had gotten blasted into the hallway.

TEN SECONDS TILL DETENTION, NINE, EIGHT, SEVEN SIX, FIVE, FOUR, THREE, TWO, ONE!"

The device the unconscious body of Alexander was laying on began to glow bright and emit a piercing whine. It started to shake violently and them detonated.

The video was completely white for three minutes until it faded to reveal Beltino labs. Alexander got up with a groan and looked around in the smoke. Without warning a figure approached him. He reacted and grabbed it.

A voice yelled "PUT HER DOWN!" And then Fox showed up pointing a gun at him. So then he pulled his dagger out and put it on his victims neck. It starts to cry it sounded female. Alarmed he released her. Then Fox grabbed her and pulled her away. "Monsters don't cry." He said to himself.

"Get on the floor!" Fox yelled at him. He was then joined by Falco who had also trained his gun on Alexander. "I said get on the floor.

He just stared at them. Without warning he fell to his knees and dropped his gun "They're all dead." He whispered "I couldn't save them. I promised them I would, I promised."

They all watched him whisper softly to himself. The blue fox women especially.

Fox and Falco had lowered their blasters and fox walked up to him. "Hey...are you alright?" he asked softly.

He stopped talking to himself, and looked at his gun. Fox halted his walk, and looked about ready to pull his out. Alexander picked up his gun and brought it up and continued to raise his gun until the barrel rested under the chin of his helmet. "Sir put the gun down." Fox said quietly.

He turned his helmet to look Fox directly in the eye. "I failed them." He whispered before pulling the trigger.

"NOOO!" Fox shouted running over.

CLICK

The gun was broken. He let it fall from his numb fingers and hit the floor. "Kill me, please just end it all."

Fox had a sad look on his face like the others. "Im sorry I can't." Fox said. With no way out of his suffering he sighed got up and walked over to fox and stuck his arms out. Fox out his hand behind his back and suddenly a bunch of animal people came and took him away.

(End of video.)


	4. Chapter 4

Shattered

Chapter IV

They sat in the conference room after the video had faded to black. The room was silent as they tried to grasp the reality of the humans situation. "So that's what happened, I am the last of my people." Alexander sighed sadly.

General Pepper focused on him. "I, on behalf of the cornerian people offer my condolences, and I personally would like to commend your valorous efforts."

"Thank you sir, but I failed my people. I was supposed to get them out of there, because I didn't my entire race is gone. When I die so will my species." Alexander said quietly. He looked distraught as he sat in his chair. He clearly had no one or anything left. "I don't even know what to do anymore. I had no family left, they were converted into those things many years ago. The army was my family after that, and now I don't even have them. What do I do now?"

Krystal's heart bled for him. She lost everything when her planet was destroyed. She knew what it was like to be alone, to be the only one. She was about to suggest something when Pepper spoke.

"Well son, I don't know what it's like to lose everything to something like that, but if you need something to do you can join the cornerian army. We could use a soldier like you. Of course we would have to run some tests and what not before you would be cleared, but if you did pass I would be honored to have you."

"Like me? I failed my duty. Why would you want me?"

"You displayed conduct befitting of a good soldier and a will to keep going no matter the circumstances. We need more men like that." Pepper said seriously.

The human looked deep in thought, no doubt trying to puzzle out what he should do now. Fox was studying him closely. From what he saw he was brave and an excellent soldier. Someone that the starfox team could use. Fox also noticed how intensely Krystal was looking at him. She was obviously interested in him. With that in mind fox came to a decision. "General if I may, I have an idea."

Pepper stopped taking to the human. "What would that be Fox?"

"What if, if he agrees of course, he were to join Starfox?"

Pepper thought about it. "I don't have a problem with that, is that what you would like?" He asked Alexander.

He answered after a moment. "I don't want to be rude, but could I have a day to think about it? This is all going very fast. I was fighting monsters less then a day ago, and now I'm in some different place with people I have never seem before."

"Of course you can! How about I get some of my men to take you to an available room where you can rest?" Pepper said.

"That would be appreciated sir. I would also like to request that my handgun be returned. After it's...malfunction I would like to fix it." Alexander replied.

"Alright I'll see what I can do." Pepper pressed something on the wrist of his red and yellow uniform. Seconds later two armored huskies with strange looking rifles walked in from a side door. "Sergeant." Pepper called to one of them. Their ears perked up when they were called. "Please escort Alexander here to the open quarters on level 7, and on the way stop by the armory and return his pistol to him."

"Yes sir!" They said unanimously. The one on the left, a malamute, turned to Alexander "if you would follow us sir, we will take you now."

"Alright then." The human said as he got up from his seat near the door. He turned to the occupants of the room. " it was nice meeting you all I shall think on your offers." Alexander then followed the two huskies out of the room.

The room was quiet until Pepper spoke, "so Fox what do you think of all this?"

"Well sir, I think that his man has lost everything. I don't want to sound crude, but I think we should put him on suicide watch." Fox said bluntly.

"I agree, in most cases I have heard after people suffer extreme loss survivor guilt sets in. Which leads to most committing or attempting to commit suicide. So for that reason and that one alone we will be monitoring his room tonight. It also might help if someone were to stay with him. Perhaps someone who he can relate to?"

"I...I can sir." A voice said hurriedly. They turned to see the owner of the voice. It was Krystal. She looked decidedly nervous at all the attention. Falco was smirking from his seat across from her. "...I mean..uh I know what's it's like so...uh, I would be the logical choice!" She said quickly.

"I see no problem with that." Pepper said, "just ask one of the guards to show to his room when you are ready."

"Okay." She said meekly.

Alexander followed the guards as they walked down the hallways. "Uh...excuse me sir?" The other husky, a Siberian, said hesitantly.

"Yes?"

"Uh...where are you from?"

"I'm from a very far away place. A place I hope you will never have to see." Alexander replied cryptically.

"Oh...okay then, so where are the rest of you?" The huskies were in front so they did not see his pained expression.

"They...are gone."

"Where did they go?" The ignorant dog asked.

"Nowhere."

The husky turned around confused. "What does that mean?"

"How about we hurry up and get to the armory?" The Malamute said to the innocent looking dog. He obviously understood what Alexander was implying.

"Oh...right let's get going!" The younger dog said before picking up his pace. Alexander gave a thankful nod to the older guard who just returned it and followed after the rapidly disappearing Siberian.

Alexander followed after them thinking that this was not going to be easy. Two minutest later they arrived at the armory. When Alexander walked in he could see a few cornerians in lab coats standing around a table. The most likely scientists were practically drooling over his broken gun. They had obviously never seen such an advanced slug thrower. Impatient he walked up to one of them and tapped him on the back.

The rabbit scientist sounded annoyed as he turned to face the interruption. "Excuse me, can't y..." The brown rabbit froze mid lecture. His muzzle was hanging open and his long floppy ears were laid out flat on his head almost blocking his blue eyes from view. His silence caused the others to investigate. When they all looked over they had similar expressions.

"Yes I was wondering if I could have my weapon back?" Alexander asked. He theorized that the only reason the egg heads weren't panicking was the fact that the two guards behind him were unalarmed by his presence, and Pepper had told everyone on base about him, but they probably did not think they would ever see him.

"Well...uh sir, I would like to study it more. It is a most fascinating weapon." The lapine's face lit up suddenly with an idea. "Maybe sir you could explain some of its workings to us?" He asked hopefully.

Alexander was hesitant to show anyone human technology. After a minute he scoffed internally. There was no one left that would object. "I suppose I could."

The scientist and his fellows were ecstatic. "Thank you sir! Your contribution to science will not be forgotten!"

"Yeah well...uh your welcome. Moving along what you are seeing here is the x-37 Sagittata. It was a relatively new weapon, having only been made a few years ago. It is different from other revolvers. This is because in fact it's cylinder is also its ammunition."

The scientists looked confused. "Allow me to explain, the cylinder is a block of tungsten carbide and steel. These elements are fused together to create a very potent combination."

"How does it work?" A geeky looking ferret asked.

"The block of metal is inserted into the weapon which becomes its cylinder." He points to the handguns cylinder. The weapon was sitting on the table. "The weapon then chips the slab of metal takes the shard and flings it out of the barrel at lethal velocity. "

"How large is the magazine?"

"The cylinder can contain anywhere from one hundred and fifty to two hundred shards."

"Amazing!" Another of the cornerians said, an eagle. "If we could harness this for ourselves soldiers could carry more ammo into battle!"

"That one you would have to figure out yourselves."

"Why?" The bunny asked.

"We never got the chance to adapt it to larger firearms."

"Oh...well in any case the cornerian science community thanks you for your assistance in this manner." The rabbit said gratefully.

"Your welcome, just because my people are gone does not mean our technology should perish alongside us." Alexander said somewhat sadly.

"Your people are gone?" The rabbit asked. Clearly Not everyone knew of his plight.

"Yes they were wiped out by a...plague." He said slowly.

The Siberian's ears twitched. He must have heard Alexander's explanation.

"I am truly sorry to hear that...?" The rabbit's unspoken question was answered.

"Alexander, Alexander Von Jäger."

"That is a interesting name."

"My family was from a place called Germany." He explained. "I don't know much about it though. I never had the chance to go there."

"Well then Alexander I hope to meet you again." The lapine said as he grabbed the pistol and returned it to its owner.

Alexander grabbed it and placed it in its holster on his waist. "So do I doctor...?" Alexander copied the rabbit.

"Doctor Adam Garullo." The rabbit stuck his paw out in a apparently universal gesture.

"It was nice meeting you doctor Adam." Alexander shook his paw. "May we cross paths once more."

Alexander after saying his goodbyes left flanked by the two guards. They walked down many corridors before coming across an elevator. The malamute pressed a button on the side and seconds later the metal doors slid open. The group stepped inside and Alexander could see one of them press the number seven. 'Strange I have come to a different place where they speak the same language and use the same mathematical system. The chances of that happening, and my arrival are simply astronomical,' he thought to himself. The doors opened and they entered yet another corridor. Although this time the Siberian decided to start talking.

"Mr. Alexander sir?"

"Yeah?"

"I wanted to apologize for my insensitive questioning earlier, it was completely unprofessional."

"Don't worry about it," he looked at the dog's id, "corporal Matthew. You had no idea so you were not at fault."

"Either way I just wanted to speak my mind."

"If it makes you feel better you are forgiven."

The dog looked relieved. "That's good to hear."

That's when the other dog, Alexander saw that his id said sergeant O'Malley, began talking. "Sir we are at your room."

Alexander saw that they had stopped outside a door. "So we are."

"This is where we take our leave." The sergeant said. "Farewell sir." He then headed back to the elevator, but the younger one hung back a little longer.

"It was nice meeting you sir."

"As it was for me to meet you. Thank you for showing me to my room. I have had a very long and strange day. I think I will need to rest awhile."

"Alright then sir, have a good day." Matthew ran to catch up to his sergeant.

Alexander watched them until the elevator door closed. Then he opened the door and entered the room they gave him.

The room was sparsely decorated, unsurprising considering it was on a military base. He took a little while to get acquainted with his new accommodations. Once he had figured out where everything was i.e closet, bathroom, bed, and table. He could only assume since there was no window that he was deep underground. Satisfied with his observational skills he then walked over to he table.

Unknown to him he was being monitored by Pepper and Starfox. They watched as he moved his wrist over the table and entered a button combination into his right wrist device. They watched in fascination as an outfit materialized onto the table. Once that was done he pressed another combination of buttons on the inside of his armor'a clavicle. There was a hiss of escaping air as the heavily armored suit broke up into segments while still holding its basic shape. Once that was done he exited through the back. He was now wearing an almost skintight undersuit that was black. The man was surprisingly muscular, his definition showed through the suit. They noticed that the rig was still connected to him and it was glowing a healthy shade of blue.

Fox saw the white furred spots on Krystal's muzzle pinken slightly, it made him smile knowingly. He heard a sound come from the screen and turned back to it. The door to the bathroom had closed and the outfit on the table was now gone. A few minutes later Alexander stepped out of the bathroom in his new apparel. He was now wearing black combat boots, black pants, a red shirt with black tribal markings, a leather jacket, black tactical gloves, and a black military cap with a logo on the visor that could not be seen all that well. Clearly the man was a fan of the color black Fox concluded.

Alexander then griped the heavy armor and pulled it to the side of the room, but not before taking the wrist modules and pistol holster and attaching them to his new clothes. They heard him humph satisfied with his efforts so far and go back to the table. He used them again and a little toolkit appeared on the table. He drew his revolver from it's holster and set it on the table. Alexander then opened the little tool case and started to tinker with the gun. In little time it looked like he had found out what was wrong with it and fixed it in short order. He pulled it up inserted the cylinder and spun the thing without any problems making the man nod to himself.

Then they watched worriedly as he began to intently stare at the newly repaired gun. Fox and Pepper started to think that maybe, giving a man who had attempted to kill himself earlier a gun, was a bad idea. They looked on as he stared at it for a long time before sighing and putting it back on the table, making the viewers all let out a collective sigh of relief, even Falco had, and he never did things like that.

"I guess I should go talk to him now." Krystal announced as she stood up.

"Okay Krys, we'll see you in a bit." Fox said. He then turned off the screen and got up. "Pepper and I have to sort things out anyways."

She said her goodbyes to the team and left the room. After asking a guard for directions she found herself outside his door. She was hesitant to knock. For some reason she was nervous. She didn't know why but she pushed through and rapped on the door softly.

Alexander was sitting at a table. Having just fixed his revolver, the inside mechanism for the conversion of the shards into deadly projectiles was jammed, he had no idea what to do now. He contemplated shooting himself and he almost did earlier, but there was something that he couldn't quite decipher that prevented him. After a minute he decided that the military would be the way to go. Maybe he'll die on some mission and won't have to worry about anything anymore.

He sat there for a few minutes until he heard a gentle knock on his door. Getting up he went over to the door and opened it slowly. Standing there was the beautiful blue vixen from that Fox guy's team. She was in a conservative blue and black uniform with small armor plates and she had a stick like object strapped to her waist. Her eyes were a sparkling sea green that complimented her blue and white fur. He noticed that he was allot taller then her. He stared at her for awhile before remembering his manners. You couldn't blame the guy it's not every day a blue fox women knocks on your door. "Hello miss...Krystal, how can I help you?"

She looked incredibly nervous. It made him feel bad that it was probably his fault. "Uh...yes...uh I came to...uh talk to you." She said weakly.

"Of course come on in." He gestured for her to enter. She walked in hesitantly as he pulled a seat out for her. "Please sit."

"Thank you." She replied as she sat down in he seat and he pushed it in for her. "You're so polite." She commented.

"Yes well my mother always taught me to be polite and kind to ladies, no matter what."

"Your mother sounded like a great women."

"She was, she taught me everything I know. I will miss her dearly." Alexander said sadly.

"I'm sorry about your people and family, I know what's it's like to lose everything." Krystal said knowingly.

"Really?" Alexander asked intrigued.

"Yes, my people were not cornerians."

"Is that why you are blue?"

"Correct I am a Cerinian. From the dead world, Cerinia."

"Dead world? It was destroyed?"

"It was destroyed by a evil primate called Andross."

Alexander frowned deeply. "I am truly sorry to hear that, I wish that I could have been there to stop it."

This baffled Krystal. This man was more concerned about her then himself. This made her feel a certain warmth inside. No one besides fox had ever really shown that level of care. And fox was more of a brother to her.

"Why would you want to?"

At this he really looked depressed and Krystal felt terrible for asking. "I failed my people so maybe I could have helped another's."

"It wasn't your fault. I saw you fight against those things. You did all you could and more. That's all that could have been asked of you." She tried to placate him.

"In the end it does not matter, they're gone." They sat in silence. Noticing that this was not the way to go about this Alexander switched tactics. "So anyways why don't you tell me about yourself."

Krystal smiled, she was glad to be on a different topic. "Okay, well I was born and raised on my home planet and after it's destruction I went to find the one responsible. During my search I heard a distress call from a planet called Sauria. Shortly after I arrived I was captured. Only much later was I rescued by Fox, who as it turned out was fighting the one responsible for my planets destruction. Once Andross was defeated I decided to join Starfox. Since then we have been doing small missions for General Pepper. And that's my story."

"Interesting, and I guess it's only fair that I tell you mine." Alexander said.

"Only if you want to." Krystal said kindly.

"No, it's alright I can tell you." He took a minute to collect his thoughts. "I was born on a planet called Tython V. I spent most of my youth there with my mother and sister. Life was rough as our father had died fighting rebels forcing my mom to work many jobs. In order to help with the bills I dropped out of school and joined the Sovereign Colonies Armed Forces, or S.C.A.F at fifteen. A year later the marker war started. I fought those things for two years before we tried to run away from them. My family did not make it. I lived the next four years on the Phoenix space station before the attack, and now here I am"

Krystal nodded "sounds like a harrowing life."

"Indeed it was, but I'm not complaining, I escaped where as everyone else did not."

"Well I'm glad you did." Krystal said.

Alexander smiled at her sadly. "I'll be honest with you I was not set on living very long after that." Hearing that made her frown. "But I think now it won't be so bad."

The spent a hour or so talking about small things. It almost made him forget he was the only human left, and he was now on a planet with walking talking animals. Eventually she said she was tired and so Alexander led her to the door.

"It was nice talking to you Krystal."

She smiled broadly, causing the tips of her sharp pointy teeth to appear faintly. "It was pleaser talking with you as well Alexander. I hope you consider Fox's offer I would like to work with you."

"Truth be told I was planning to join the military. That's what my life was." She looked sad. Her ears started to droop and her tail was limp. "But after talking with you I think I will take his offer."

She immediately perked up. "Really! That's great!"

"Yeah I think so to, goodnight Krystal."

"Goodnight Alexander." After saying her goodbyes she left and disappeared down the hallway.

He closed the door after she left and walked back to his bed. He say down and smiled to himself. 'Maybe things won't be so bad."


	5. Chapter 5

Shattered

Chapter V

Alexander awoke from his nap. The day before had ended after his conversation with Krystal. He took the time as he lay in bed to go over recent events. He was in a different universe, which was most likely entirely populated by animal people, he was going to join a mercenary company called Starfox, and so far he hasn't felt any aftereffects of the marker signal. Which was in fact due to the necklace he never ever took off.

The pendant looked like a marker, but it canceled out the markers signal. It also prevents the growth of his current dementia. This little bit of technology was made during the war to stop the soldiers from going insane after prolonged exposure to the artifacts.

After he was done rerunning the last days events in his mind Alexander got out of bed to where his armor was. Once he was stripped down to his body suit and had stored his civilian outfit he climbed back into his armor. It sealed back up around him. He took a bit of time to run the basic movement exercises to make sure the joints still moved properly. Satisfied with its functionality Alexander was ready for the day. His good mood was broken by one innocent thought.

How was he supposed to contact anyone?

He had neglected to ask for a communication device or anything of the like, neither did he have an inkling of where they might be. His desperate dilemma was solved when he heard a knock on the door. Anxious he quickly went over to open it.

Standing there was a blue and red avian. Alexander thought it was Falco. "Uh...Falco is it?"

The avian nodded his head. "Yeah the names Falco, Fox forgot to get you a communicator and so he sent me down here to retrieve you."

"Alright then."

"So just follow me and I'll take you to him."

"Sound like a plan." Falco was obviously not a patient bird. Right after Alexander said that he swiveled around and left, hopefully to where ever Fox was. With his guide swiftly disappearing he had no choice but to go after him. Falco was quiet for the entire trip.

As they walked in silence Alexander found himself gently rubbing the pendant around his neck with his gloved hands. It was his salvation and damnation. It was the only reason he was not insane, unfortunately it was also condemning him. As per its design it emitted a undetectable frequency that while preventing his insanity, did not reverse it, and in point of fact was killing him slowly. The frequency over a very long period of time corrupted brain function. Eventually it will cause his organs to fail and he will die. Before the collapse the sovereign colonies had a solution for the markers effects but it was lost when earth fell. Perhaps with the help of the cornerians he could rediscover the cure.

Deciding that now was not the time to think of his demise Alexander focused on following Falco. He was by this time opening a door and holding it for Alexander. "Well are ya coming?" He asked sarcasticly.

With a sigh Alexander walked into the room. In the room was Fox, General Pepper, Krystal, a frog, and a hare. He could only deduce that the frog was Slippy and the hare was Peppy. When Fox saw him he smiled widely Krystal was also. "Morning Alexander! I see you decided to join the land of the living." Poor Fox did not know how ironic that was.

"Yes I did, and I have to say for military cots those beds are exceedingly comfortable."

Fox laughed. "Yeah first time I slept here I said the same thing."

"Good morning Alexander." Krystal said still smiling.

"To you as well." Alexander replied. "It is nice to see you."

"Alright let's get to business." Fox cut the pleasantries short. "I take it you have made your decision?"

"Yes I have, I've come to conclude that your offer is right for me."

"That's good to hear! You will be a great asset to he team!" Fox exclaimed enthusiastically.

"I'll just be glad to have a purpose again."

"Well, now that that's settled we should get going. I know it sound kinda rushed but we have allot of stuff to do." Fox said.

Pepper interjected after that. "I should warn you Alexander that I will be addressing the cornerian people today about you. Do not worry I will leave out the circumstances leading up to your appearance. I will just be informing them of your presence so that they will know and not spread panic or the like. I'm sorry to say but you will most likely be asked to be interviewed. Of course you don't have to accept. I just wanted to warn you in advance."

"Thank you for the warning general. I'll know what to do when the time comes." He then looked to Fox. "I'm ready to go sir, it's not like I have anything to carry with me."

"None of that sir stuff, just call me fox. I don't feel like a sir." Fox corrected Alexander.

"Okay Fox."

Fox nodded. "Good, alright let's go, further introductions can be done later." They walked out of the room after saying goodbye to Pepper. Fox and the others led the way while Alexander and Krystal lagged behind.

"So Alexander," Krystal began. "Are you happy your coming with us ?"

"Yes I am Krystal, to be honest with you the deciding factor for me was you." He answered honestly.

She smiled warmly at that, her eyes sparkled like emeralds. "That's a kind think for you to say."

"It is true. You have been very nice to me. Not only that your the person I know the most here." Alexander then looked apologetic. "I would also like to apologize profusely for my...antics when I first showed up here."

"It's alright you were just reacting. You can't be blamed for that."

"In any case I just wanted you to know how sorry I am." The group then arrived at an elevator.

"This will take is to he surface." Fox told Alexander as he pressed the button. The doors closed and they rode up in silence. Soon the doors opened and they walked into the buildings foyer. Across from them was a registration desk with two guards alongside it.

As they got closer Alexander saw that they were the dogs who escorted him the day before. When the younger one saw him he waved vigorously. "Hi mister Alexander sir!"

He waved back. "Hello corporal, what are you doing here?"

"We had guard duty up here today so we got to see you off."

"That's good, it's nice seeing familiar faces."

"Well yeah sir we just wanted to see you off."

"Thanks I appreciate it." Alexander said gratefully.

When they finished their farewells Alexander and the others left the military compound. He traveled with them to a large vehicle that was hovering a short walk from the building they had emerged from. They all crammed inside with Alexander stuffed into the back with Krystal and Slippy.

Fox took the controls and the hovercar glided up into he air. As fox took them to wherever he had planned. Alexander was talking with Krystal, but was interrupted by Slippy. "H-hi I'm Slippy." The jittery toad stuck out a shaking hand. He was obviously nervous due to him.

"Hi Slippy as you no doubt know I am Alexander."

"Y-yeah I-I do."

"Are you okay?" Alexander asked with concern.

"I-I'm alright it's j-just that I've never seen a-a human before."

"I am sorry for making you uncomfortable."

"Oh no! It's not you, it's just a little condition I have. It happens whenever I feel even a little bit nervous. I just learned to live with it." At this time he was talking normally so Alexander attributed that to the fact he was no longer nervous. "Anyways I wanted to talk to you about your equipment."

"Really?"

"Yeah! It's amazing. Your people developed the technology to carry a portable storage device!"

"Not really, it was only given to soldiers and other officials. We didn't really give it to everyone. The device also has more functions then that."

"No way!" Krystal was also listening as she was interested in his people and wants to learn everything she could about them.

"Way. The wrist device also had a telekinetic engine and stasis module."

Slippys eyes practically exploded from their sockets. "Telekinesis!"

"Correct. Both of the devices can pick up objects and manipulate them."

"That is so cool!" Krystal exclaimed. "But what is stasis?"

"Stasis is a newer piece of tech that can temporarily produce a time dilation."

Slippy was slack jawed. Krystal not being a science nerd did not understand.

"Time dilation?"

Slippy explained. "A time dilation is something that can manipulate time. For us though it is still hypothetical. So I'm not hundred percent sure I'm correct.

"You are correct Slippy this device," Alexander pointed out the one one his left. "Can stop time for specific objects that it directly effects and interacts with."

Poor Krystal was befuddled. "What does that mean?"

"Basically it slows down people and objects." Alexander elucidated.

They spent the remainder of the trip talking. Alexander got to know Slippy pretty well. The toad was a friend of Fox since they went to school together. Fox and Falco had always looked out for him. Alexander liked Slippy, he was a smart guy and was pretty funny given the chance. Krystal and Alexander were laughing at one of slippy's stories about school as the hovercar landed at the starport.

Alexander could not figure something out. Sure he was having fun right now, but he felt so...empty inside. He missed everyone. He missed Santiago and all his other friends that had died. Most of all he missed his mother and sister. She was only three years old. She might have been adopted but that didn't matter she was family, and now they were all dead. He didn't understand why now this was hitting him. His depressing pondering was interrupted by Fox's voice.

"Alright we're here." Fox said as he shut down the hover car and opened his door. They quickly filed out of the car and walked to the landing field. Alexander suppressed all his grievances as he saw the great fox.

It was huge. The ship was over two thousand feet long. While not the biggest vessel he had ever laid eyes on it was still an impressive sight. The steel grey/white hull was beautiful in its own way. Alexander also noticed the symbol on the side of it. It was the same on all of the teams clothing. A four legged fox with wings. "You have a magnificent ship Fox."

The vulpine smiled clearly pleased with his comment. "She sure is isn't she. My dad ordered it before his disappearance. Since then I've been taking care of it."

"From what I can see it has been treated well."

They walked towards the ship and fox pressed a button on his bracer. This caused a section of the hull to split and a ramp to come out. "Let's get inside." He said.

When they stepped inside a curiosa Falco had a question to ask Their new team member. "Hey Alex?"

He turned to the inquisitive avian. "Yeah."

"How big were ships in your reality?"

"Well Falco they usually could be anywhere from three to five kilometers, the smallest being three."

Falco whistled. "That's bigger then anything we got."

"That may be so but it didn't save my people from annihilation."

"Yeah..." Falco said awkwardly.

Alexander then was distracted by the hanger he found himself in. It was large, and had five strange looking aircraft. "Hey Falco what are those?"

He looked over. "Ah those are Arwings, basically they are fighters. Although our's are heavily modified."

"Cool, I piloted a fighter for a year before the marker war."

Falco was surprised. "You did!"

"Yep I was a squadron leader for six months."

Falco looked a little bit more impressed. "Got any stories?"

"More then I could I tell." Alexander replied wistfully.

"Well if you feel like sharing don't be afraid to hit me up. I always like to swap war tales." Falco said as he walked deeper into the ship.

Alexander stood in the middle of the hanger a minute. He didn't know where to go. Luckily Fox came to the rescue. "Hey Krystal why don't you show our new team member his quarters."

Krystal all but jumped at the chance for a little alone time with Alexander. "Right away Fox!" Immediately after that she grabbed Alexander's hand and led him deeper into the ship.

Fox stood by Peppy as he watched the two run off. "She has fallen head over heals for him."

"I can only hope her love can fix his shattered soul." Peppy said sadly.

Alexander was being dragged down a long corridor while Krystal babbled almost to herself. "This is gonna be so great! You'll be here in the ship and we can talk and do fun things and you can teach me things and you can tell me about your people and I can tell you about mine and we will be great friends!"

Alexander looked upon her in horror. She must not need to breath! "Slow down Krystal I still need to get settled in." He begged.

She slowed down a tiny bit and talked slower. He was incredible thankful for that. "Yeah okay sure." Now that she was some what normal again he could actually talk to her. They talked until she stopped in front of a door. "Here's your room. I am right over there," she pointed to a room a few doors down. "Don't be a stranger!" She merrily skipped away to her own room whistling innocently.

With a bewildered sigh and shake of his head he stepped into his room. It was big. The room was larger then his at the barracks before his unbelievable transition into another reality. More then a hundred square feet in total. It had a bed and all the standard amenities. Alexander walked to the bed and fiddled with his storage device. A short time later he had all of the few personal effects he always carried with him on it. He had a picture of Santiago and all of his friends, one of his mother and sister, a medal for valorous conduct on Talivon, and couple other things. He put the pictures up on a desk that was facing a window. Then he placed the medal on a clip built into the wall by the desk. He looked at his now homelier area and was content. Alexander thought about taking off his armor but decided against it. He still felt safer inside it. Even though the necromorphs were gone a small part of him was still afraid. He subconsciously held on to his pendent.

When he finished his room Alexander left to find Slippy. He wanted to show the frog some human technology. He needed to in case something were to happen to him, and so that it will not be lost. He wandered directionless, he really needed to stop and familiarize himself with every place he went, it was getting a little frustrating. Once more he was saved, but not by whom he expected.

"DO YOU REQUIRE ASSISTANCE?"

He spun around to see a golden robot it was very tall. In fact it was on eye level with him.

"Yeah, who are you?"

"I AM ROB 64, robotic operator of The Great Fox." It answered in a toneless voice.

This was something Alexander had not expected. Humanity stopped any research in robotics after focusing on shock point drives. He had never thought he would ever see a real automaton. But it was hardly the most mind blowing thing he has seen since his arrival.

"Well in that case do you think you can take me to Slippy?"

"AFFIRMATIVE." ROB unceremoniously turned and left.

Taking the hint Alexander followed him until he found himself at the frogs door. He was about to thank the robot when he saw it leaving already. With a shrug he dismissed it and went inside.

While Alexander was in Slippy's room Fox was on the bridge talking with Falco and Peppy. He had ordered ROB to take them into orbit so that they could by ready for any new assignments. "So guys what's your take on our newest crew member? I want your honest opinions."

"I think he is a pretty cool guy." Falco said.

Fox looked startled. "Really? Usually you don't have a very...friendly opinion on anyone."

"He seems like an alright kind of guy. Can't I have a opinion that isn't mean?" Falco retorted.

"Okay jeez I was just surprised that's all." Fox defended himself. "So Peppy, what's yours?"

"I don't have problem with him Fox, although we haven't really talked." Peppy threw in his two cents.

"Alright I can understand that." He was about to say more when his wrist beeped. "Fox here who is this?"

"Hey Fox! Care to talk with some of your old friends?"

Fox was confused until he recognized the voice. "Miyu! What have you been up to?"

"Oh you know, a little this and that, oh and say hi Fay."

"Hiya Fox!" The heard a feminine voice butt in happily.

"It's nice to hear from you guys, but for what reason?"

"We were just wondering if we could rally up the old team, for old time sakes." Miyu explained.

"We'd be glad to have you two on the team again. Where are you guys?"

"We can see your ship from here. We're in orbit nearby."

"Well by all means come on in. The bay doors are opening."

"Alrighty Fox see you in a few." The joyous voice of Miyu said before she ended the call.

Fox was smiling until Falco burst his bubble. "Hey Wise guy!"

"What?"

"Didn't you forget to tell them something important?"

Fox had a blank expression on his face. "Like?"

"Oh I don't know, maybe the fact we have a alien from an alternate reality aboard the ship!"

"Ooooohhh yeah."

Slippy's room was for all intents and purposes a workshop. He had bedding and what not, but the rest of the space was taken up by tools, parts, half assembled components, and a plethora of related objects. The toad was sitting among them with his back to the door in front of a table. Unwilling to startle him Alexander made his presence known.

"Hey Slippy."

The toad turned to him. "Hi Alexander what can I do for you?"

"Actually I was going to ask you the same thing."

"Really?"

"Yeah you were interested in my people's technology and I was wondering if you would like to take a look at it?"

Slippy's face lit up "would I!"

"I thought so." Alexander walked over to the excited toad and took the other empty chair alongside.

"What can I see first?"

Alexander took of his left wrist device carefully and laid it on the table.

Miyu was feeling happy as she flew toward the huge outline of the Great Fox with Fay in their Arwings. Soon they would be running with the old crew. "Fey how you holding up?"

Fay, who was flying in the Arwing next to her replied. "Fantastic, I can't wait to see Fox and the others."

"I can't either Fay. It's been to long." They flew into the hanger and landed with the other fighters. They climbed out and met up at the door. "Let's go."

Fox sat in his captains chair with his muzzle supported by his two paws. He currently was trying to solve a conundrum. He hadn't told miyu and Fay about Alexander. Additionally he did not tell him about them. Somehow he was going to have to do this delicately. Before he could hey anymore time to think the doors to the bridge opened and Miyu walked in with Fay.

Miyu was a orange and black spotted lynx. She was the same age as fox (twenty years old). Fay was a border collie with brown and white fur. She was younger at nineteen, she was as old as Krystal.

"Fox it's good to see yah." Miyu said as she walked in and stopped in front of his chair.

"Likewise Miyu so how's it been?"

So the module recharges slowly until it's ready to use again?" Slippy asked. They had spent half an hour going over the design of the device.

"Correct Slippy! You'll be able to make these in no time!" Alexander congratulated the toad.

"You think so?"

"I know so." Alexander replied as he leaned back into his chair. He was unknowingly fiddling with his pendant again. Slippy noticed this and for the first time got a good look at it. It faintly reminded him of some thing, in a moment he remembered.

"Hey about that thing around your neck?"

"What this?" Alexander motioned to his necklace. Slippy nodded. "This was given to me by my commanding officer. It...helps with a certain issue I have."

"Oh...I just wanted to ask because it looks like the thing we found on Aquas." Slippu said innocently. Alexander froze mid lean back and almost fell out of his chair.

"What!" He shouted.

Slippy was concerned as Alexander seemed to be on the brink of a panic attack. "Yeah... Hehe my father's research team uncovered it month ago. It's what allowed us to upgrade out teleport technology.

Suddenly Alexander yanked his wrist device of the table reattached it as his helmet formed around his head. "Slippy we need to go to Fox now!" He yelled voice distorted by his helm. He jumped up and headed for the door.

"Why?" Slippy asked nervously, he was wringing his hands absently.

"That artifact is a marker." Alexander said seriously.

"Well it sound like you guys were busy." Fox said after Miyu and Fay finished filling him in on the last couple of months. "I also have something to tell you guys. It will probably sound crazy but you gotta believe me. You see yesterday a-"

Without warning the bridge doors flew open and Alexander rushed in completely armored with a sword and pistol strapped to his waist. "Fox!" He shouted.

Fox noticed that Slippy was behind Alexander and looked out of breath.

"Who the hell is that!" Miyu shouted before whipping out her blaster and aiming it at the sudden intruder. Fay looked panicked as she clumsily pulled out her own.

Alexander only spared a second to look at them before he ignored them. "Fox!" He shouted again.

"What Alexander? What could be so important that you startled my old friends?" Fox asked angrily.

"You have a marker on Aquas." Alexander said quickly.

Fox felt a blast of cold rocket threw his nervous system. "Oh god!"

"We need to go there now! There might still be time for me to stop it!" Alexander pleaded desperately.

"What's going on?" Miyu asked confusedly. Some random guy in a full suit of armor just bursts onto the deck and started to yell at Fox.

"No time to explain Miyu, Fay strap in. We're going to overcloak the warp drive." Fox ordered.

Still confused they listened to fox and strapped in. In short order fox had called in the rest of the team. "Okay guys listen up. We need to rush now, strap in with Miyu and Fay."

"What's the matter fox?" Falco asked.

"Alexander said there was a marker on Aquas."

"Oh shit!" Falco shouted. Peppy, Slippy, and Krystal looked scared. Alexander was just standing quietly in the corner. He pulled the blade out of its sheath and was sharpening it.

"We are leaving now, ROB overclock the drives and get us there pronto."

"AFFIRMATIVE."

"You might want to sit down." Fox told Alexander. He just stood there quietly not saying anything and continued to sharpen his sword. Fox just shrugged and belted himself into the captains chair.

"INITIATING WARP." ROB said before the entire bridge shook. They all noticed that while they were pulled tightly into their seats Alexander stood their like a boulder in a river unaffected by the uncontrollable burst of g's. After a few minutes the bridge stopped shaking.

"DESTINATION ARRIVAL AQUAS." ROB informed.

Once it settled down Fox left his chair and turned to Alexander. "What do we do now." Miyu and Fay watched still having no idea what was going on. They had been forgotten in light of this new development.

They all watched as he sheathed his blade and returned Fox's gaze through the helmets slitted visor. "I need someone to drop me off wherever the facility is."

"I have to go with you, I can't let you go alone!" Fox protested.

Alexander stormed over to fox and picked up the vulpine by the collar and lifted him off the deck. "No I go alone! None of you have the experience to survive an outbreak! I will not allow you to be killed!" He shouted at Fox before he let him back down. Everyone was surprised at his sudden display of aggression.

"Okay okay calm down." Fox said.

Alexander calmed down a little bit. "Forgive me Fox, but learning that these thing are here as well has me enraged."

"It's alright I understand, but are you serious, alone?"

"I am indeed none of you know what it's like. I could not protect you. Maybe I'll get there in time and stop it before anyone gets hurt, but that's beside the point I need to go now."

Fox sighed in resignation. "I'll drop you off in the blue-marine."

"I'll go with you fox! Slippy chimed in. I know where the site is." Swiftly the trio disappeared. "Okay what the hell Is going on?" Miyu shouted.

"That will take too long to explain. Let's just wait for Fox to get back." Peppy said quietly.

Less then five minutes later Alexander found himself inside a submerged ship going deeper underwater. "This is good." He told Slippy and Fox. "It's underwater this will buy me extra time."

As they got closer to the site it was revealed. The underwater facility was big. About the size of a small settlement. "Are you absolutely sure I can't go with you?" Fox asked for the hundredth time.

"Yes Fox although I greatly appreciate your concern. It will be much easier for me to go alone. That way I don't have to worry about anyone else." Slippy patted him on the back.

"Your really brave, I couldn't imagine doing this myself."

"It's not about bravery Slippy it's about protecting the innocent and avenging my people." The ship docked at one of the many tubes. With a hiss of pressurized air the hatch opened and Alexander stepped out brandishing a large rifle with three blue lights acting as aiming reticles. There was no one to great them unless you counted the unbearable silence. The room Alexander stepped into was empty and dark. Dried blood was splattered all over the walls. "It is as I feared." He said sadly.

Fox and Slippy felt nervous just standing in the hatch's entrance. "Remember if you need us we will be on the ship." Fox reminded Alexander before closing the hatch. Bathing the room in darkness. His only comfort was the built in flashlight on his gun. He stood in silence as he listened to his only way out leave.

Once they were gone he stopped hiding his anxiety. His hands were shaking and he was breathing shallowly. He gripped his rifle tighter for comfort and opened the rooms door and stepped into the pits of hell.


	6. Chapter 6

Shattered

Chapter VI

Fox and Slippy exited the blue-marine once they entered the hanger. With haste they made way to the bridge. They walked in to see Miyu, Fay, and the others sitting waiting for them. "Okay Fox what in the world is going on?" Miyu demanded her long ears flicking in annoyance.

"In an effort to save time I will shorten the story. Yesterday we were running a security gig at Beltino industries. He was testing a teleporter. Something went wrong and an alien from another reality appeared. His name was Alexander. He told a tragic story of his peoples destruction. Since he was a soldier I asked him to join starfox. He had nothing left so he agreed. That's about it you heard the rest."

"What's a marker?" Fay asked.

"Something very bad." Fox didn't want to worry them with something like that just yet.

"I wish we could see what he's doing!" Falco shouted. "That way he could have some sort of support. We should be their Fox he shouldn't have to do this alone."

"He didn't want us to get hurt Falco unfortunately I have to agree with him. We don't know how to handle this. We could easily been more a hinderance then help."

"Uh fox, we can see what he's doing." Slippy muttered.

"How?"

"When I patted him on the back I planted a bug that could interface with his suits audio and video system. Although it is only one way." He explained sheepishly.

"Well then what are you waiting for turn it on!" Falco exclaimed. They all agreed with Falco's sentiment.

Slippy hurriedly accessed the huge monitor in the room.

Interfacing with suit 10%, 20%, 30%... It went on until it reached one hundred.

Initializing connection...connection established.

The screen then lit up to reveal a long bloody corridor. The point of view was from Alexander's helmet. He was slowly walking along the corridor sweeping his rifle around. He was visibly shaking the light and reticles shivered in the dark.

It was worse then he thought. There were no bodies. This meant that A-the survivors fled and took their fallen with them. Or B-they had already converted into necromorphs. Neither theory boded well for him or the survivors, if there were any. As he walked down the corridors he could hear chattering in the vents and slick slithering. They were close. Strangely they kept their distance. This made Alexander very curios. Every time he's fought them they had suicidely charged into his gunfire.

Suddenly a vent exploded next to him. He whipped his gun around to face it. Nothing came out. Hesitantly he walked up to it. He peered in, there was nothing but darkness. Puzzled he slowly backed away and continued his search. First he would try to find any survivors. Considering there were any and he could find them and make sure they could hold out long enough for the next part of his plan. Second he would need to find the marker and interface with it. Then he could destroy it from within.

BLAM BLAM BLAM

Blaster fire! Alexander rushed to the noise. Barely paying heed to his surroundings. A few minutes later he found the source. Slumped against a wall at an intersection was a tiger. His armor was shredded and whatever had done this to him was long gone. Wasting little time he rushed to the tigers aide. "Sir can you here me!" He shouted.

"Y-yes."

"What happened?" Alexander was desperately trying to staunch his bleeding. It was hopeless blood was flowing out of a dozen cuts and slashes.

"B-bastard p-p-popped out of nowhere. *cough* got em good but it still bolted."

"I'm sorry I was too late." Alexander said sadly.

The tiger grabbed Alexander's chest plate and pulled him close. "T-there was a k-kid with me, a little wolf pup *cough* f-find her."

"I will, I promise."

"F-f-find h...The tigers head slowly lowered to his chest. He was gone.

With a sigh Alexander stood up. "May you find the rest you deserve." Alexander pulled up his inventory and grabbed an incendiary grenade. He set the timer and gently placed it on the deceased tigers chest and folded his paws over it. A minute later the corpse was bathed in cleansing fire.

Alexander briskly jogged away the flames behind him flickering in the darkness. He had to find that kid. Without warning something heavy collided into him from his left. He impacted the coinciding wall with a sickening crunch. Whatever it was it had wrapped around him. Acting quickly Alexander grabbed what the thing by the shoulders and bodily tossed it into the neighboring wall. The creature smashed into it and slid down slowly. That gave him enough time to get a good look at his new foe.

It was a horrendously mutated dog, a cocker spaniel. It's jaw had distended an extra foot, and unnatural growth of teeth made it impossible for its mouth to close. It's fur was patched in places and the rest had fallen out. The decay was devastating. The thing was falling apart, but it still posed a serious threat. Which was obvious given the massive bladed arms sprouting out of its shoulders. It was dressed in the tatters of a lab coat. By some stroke of twisted luck it's id was still attached.

The now reanimated corpse of doctor Dustin Marlow was out for blood. It had recovered and lunged at him roaring in frustration at its thwarted attack. Alexander backpedaled across the floor while unloading his rifle into its legs. Dustin fell down and started to determinedly wiggle at him. Without hesitation he got up and walked over to the snarling corpse. He raised his right foot and stomped it into oblivion without a shred of remorse. Satisfied it was no longer going to hurt anyone he walked away.

What was that?" Miyu shouted. They all were speechless. It was one thing to see alien versions of these, but your own people put things into perspective. Now they all could truly grasp what it must have been like for him. And they weren't even the ones fighting these monsters!

"That was a necromorph." Fox answered finally.

"Dear god." Fay mumbled her mouth covered by her hands. "How can he do this alone?"

Krystal was the one to answer. "He does not want to endanger any of our lives so he went alone." Even though she could agree with his logic she was deathly afraid for him. He was such a nice guy. She didn't know what she would do if anything were to happen to him.

"Say what you want about him he's earned my respect." Falco said.

"He is indeed a man of great strength." Peppy concurred.

Although the women who were more perceptive could see the subtle shaking in his limbs as he searched the corridors for the missing kid. A vent burst in front of him and a necro fox leaped out. Alexander smashed it into the far wall with the butt of his gun sending the mutant corpse flying backwards. Then he emptied the entire clip into its corroded body. It was twitching as he reloaded. The beast was just about to start moving again when he finished. The now resupplied gun roared in retaliation as it sent supersonic 10mm caseless explosive tipped rounds into the crawling corpse. The necromorph practically dissolved under the relentless barrage of munitions. Once the room hallway had gone silent Alexander could faintly hear a small voice cry out in terror.

Zeroing in on the sound he quickly ran to its location. He found himself in a corridor where five necromorphs were pounding on a metal entrance marked dormitory. He could here the frightened young voice yelling "Go away! Leave me alone!" It looked like the creatures were seconds away from peeling the door open like a banana.

Alexander primed a fragmentation grenade and hurled, it connected with an armored bear necromorph. The thing stumbled from the force of the impact and nocked over its compatriots. The small explosive detonated showering the monsters in superheated shrapnel. Waisting no time he engaged the group blasting away with his rifle. The few seconds he bought for himself were vital.

The now confused necros tried to regroup, but he never gave them the chance. Mercilessly he cut them down as they futilely tried to get up. As he finished them off he felt a piercing white hot flash of pain in his thigh. He looked down to see a small barb sticking out. The perpetrator was the torso of the bear necro. The grenade had severed its torso and a collection of waiving tentacle like protrusions had burst out of the lower half.

Enraged Alexander ripped out the barb and threw it back, into the monsters face. This distraction was bad. The other surviving necromorph had finally broken through the door. He could hear screams coming from inside. Panicking he charged into the room. Hiding under a bed at the far end of the dormitory was a black wolf cub. An eagle necromorph was trying to reach under there with its smaller front arms. The kid was screaming and smacking the hands away with a pitiful little pillow.

He was running out of time and the kid was too close for him to shoot. Alexander ran over and tackled the monster. The two smashed into the ground with a bang. The necromorph screeched into his visor as they wrestled on the ground. It's beak split open into four parts and a pustule tongue shot out and began to strangle him. The air was being crushed out of him. Acting fast he grabbed the beak parts and pulled them apart until they broke off its face. He suddenly had all the air escape his lungs. The necromorph had jabbed one of its blades into his chestplate. Luckily his armor stopped it from breaching into his suit. Although he could tell a large section of armor had been ripped away.

With his free hand Alexander began to ram his gauntleted fist into its deformed head, roaring into its face as he pounded it relentlessly. He continued the beating even after the body went limp. After he vented his rage into the unfortunate necromorph's body he slowly and painfully got up. He heard whimpering under the bed where the wolf cub was hiding.

He walked over and looked under. The female cub was all the way at the back cuddling against the pillow she used to fend off the monster. "Are you okay little one?"

The kid just shook her head and hugged the pillow tighter. "Come with me I'll take you to someplace safe." The kid looked like she was thinking for a moment until she decided. Hesitantly she climbed out from under the bed. Alexander noticed she was favoring her left footpaw. "Are you hurt?"

She finally spoke in a soft quiet tone. "I fell down and hurt my leg." Her voice was hoarse from all the screaming.

"Here climb onto my back I'll carry you." Alexander said kindly as he took a knee. The little cub climbed onto his back and wrapped her paws around his shoulders and waist.

"Thank you for saving me mister." She squeezed him tightly.

"Of course little one."

Alexander walked out of the dormitory with his new companion. She threw his aim off and she was a little heavy but that didn't bother him much. Maybe she could take him to any survivors. "Little one, do you know where the others are?"

She took a moment to answer from her perch on his back. "Mister Williams was taking me to the cafeteria before he got attacked by one of those mean monsters and told me to run. Have you seen him? He is a big ol friendly tiger. I liked him he gave me lollipops and kept me company while I waited for my sister to finish work."

She must have been talking about the tiger he found in the previous hallway. What should he tell her? "No I haven't seen him. Do you know where the cafeteria is?"

"Yeah it was on the third floor."

Now with a destination Alexander spent the next twenty minutes looking for the elevator. By the grace of god they were not attacked again. He found it and stepped inside. He pressed the three on the selection panel. "Hey mister what where those things?" The girl asked him as the waited for the door to open at their stop.

"Those were...uh...well you see..." He didn't know how to explain it to a little kid. "I don't know." He said finally without much confidence.

"That's okay." She said simply.

"Hey little one what's your name?"

"My name is Penelope!" She said happily. It almost broke his heart. That was the name of his little sister. "That's a wonderful name." He chocked out close to tears.

"Thank you, my mom always said so before she passed away." She sounded a little sad at the end. The door opened and he left the elevator. There were no necromorphs around so he went in search of the cafeteria.

"Well your mom was right." Alexander vowed to save this little girl. He might not have been able to save his sister, but goddamn he would save this girl!

"What's your name mister?"

"My name is Alexander."

"I like that."

Alexander heard scrabbling coming from the vent next to him. He started to back up slowly when he heard more scrabbling from the vents all around him. Not wanting to scare Penelope he stealthily brought his rifle to bear. "Penelope." He whispered "their here." She went quiet and held onto him tensely. He could feel her shivering through his suit.

As soon as he pulled the bolt on his rifle the vents around him exploded into activity. Alexander retreated backwards hosing down the assembly of necromorphs that had tried to ambush him. The howling hoard of bloodthirsty monsters chased after him. Penelope screamed as he desperately tried to keep them back. One got close and swiped at the cub on his back. He deflected it with his rifle. It shattered under the strong hit. Alexander swiftly unsheathed his sword and bisected the necrotic dog. As it fell he parried another attack and cut off the offending limb. By this time he had his pistol in his other hand and was shooting all the joints he could see. He felt an intense pain in his right arm. A lucky hit from a stray limb had stabbed right through his forearm. He cut the invading limb off. A large part of it was still sticking out of his arm. He couldn't fight with this little girl on his back.

He ran through the group of monster taking a dozen more shallow cuts, but he managed to break out of the trap. He ran down a set of corridors being chased by the ravenous group of undead. Their howls and Penelope's terrified screaming pushed his tired muscles past their limits. He was saved by a small sign that pointed out that the cafeteria was ahead. Pushing just a little more energy into his tired limbs he arrived at two thick steel doors. He banged on them shouting "hey open up!" He could hear arguing on the other side.

"Open the door!"

"It could be a trap!"

"Monsters don't knock dumbass, open it!"

Meanwhile he could hear the hoard approaching. They sounded hungry. "Please, at least get the kid!"

"There's a kid out there man!"

"So!"

"Open the fucking door!"

"Okay alright!"

The door opened slowly and the arguing men appeared. A lion and a horse stood inside the doorway.

"Here take the kid!" Alexander said hurriedly as he pulled Penelope of his back.

"What about you?" The lion asked as he grabbed her.

"I am going to fight off my pursuers."

"What You'll be killed!" The horse protested.

"That doesn't matter I can't let these things find a way inside." Alexander replied resolutely. "Now close the door."

"What Alexander no!" Penelope screamed as she no fought the guards and tried to get to him. "You'll die!" She was crying now as the guards carried her in. Alexander could see dozens of people inside all staring at the commotion at the door. They all displayed a common expression, fear.

This helped him become content with his choice. The door closed with a final thunk. He turned to face the the large room he was using as his redoubt. Brandishing his sword and pistol he readied himself for the end.

"What's he doing!" Krystal shouted. She was hysterical. Miyu and Fay while not as emotional looked similarly concerned. Slippy was watching completely absorbed into what was happening.

Fox, Falco, and Peppy understood. They would have done the same thing if they were in his position.

"A soldiers duty is to his people." Fox said.

"But we aren't his people." Miyu said in confusion.

"That doesn't matter to him." Falco replied. "His people are gone so I guess he decided to apply that to us."

"He's going to die!" Fay retorted.

"I don't think so." Peppy said quietly but with such presence that everyone looked at him. "He has from what he's said fought these monsters for a long time. He knows what he's doing."

"He better not die." Krystal muttered to herself. Her tail was wrapped around herself and she was holding it securely in her lap.

Seconds after he was ready the first group of necromorphs swarmed in. Immediately he started to dismember them with his pistol. The heavy caliber shards tore through the diseased flesh and shattered bone. He managed to stop the entire first wave before they got close. Then the next one roamed in.

Thirteen necromorphs rushed him. His sword was a blur as he weaved a tapestry of annihilation. Limbs flew too and fro leaving a pile of discarded torsos and severed heads. He blocked a swath of jabs, lunges, and plunges as the monsters tried to flay him alive and add him to the markers will. He stood strong and defied their attempts on his life. Yet could not hope to block all the hits.

He received a plethora of wounds and bled from numerous rents in his armor. Still he did not fall. The unending swarm of necromorphs attacked for what seemed like hours. The body count was insane. There were over a hundred chopped up corpses arrayed around him. He had not moved a single inch from his original position. It was not to last.

One necromorph got past his guard. It rammed one of its long bladed shoulder arms into his back. With a cry of pain Alexander fell to his knees. It started to jam it further in until it burst through his shoulder. With a tremendous amount of will and effort Alexander cut the limb off leaving the majority in to keep his wound from bleeding and twirled around to cut it into three pieces with two precise moves. As it fell to the ground he noticed that it was the last one. So leaking blood from innumerable lacerations, holes, and various other bad things he knocked on the door.

The doors opened slowly and there was a dozen guards waiting on the other side with weapons drawn. Once it had opened completely the guards collective muzzles hung open as they gazed at the untold destruction caused by the stranger. "Holy shit!" The lion from earlier exclaimed "you killed them all!"

"Heh yeah I did." Alexander was swaying like a frail tree in a winter storm.

When they saw him there, covered in blood and wounded grievously the lion got worried. "Shit man are you okay?"

"Nah." Alexander said before he started to collapse. Luckily two guards, a wolf and a rabbit gently caught him and carefully dragged him inside. As they all but carried him through the cafeteria Alexander who was barely conscious could see all the civilians and even the guards staring at him in awe. 'At least their safe for now.' He thought to himself.

"ALEXANDER!" A familiar young female voice yelled in concern. He limply moved his head to look at an incoming black blur until it collided into him making him groan in pain. "Oh my god!" She said as she looked upon his bloody and broken body. For some reason he couldn't stop staring at the contrast of his blood as it stained her ebony fur. It was hypnotic as he watched the red soak into the black.

"Pssh I'll be fine." He said voice slurring. His eyes felt heavy and he no longer was in any pain. Actually he felt pretty tired he just might take a little nap he told himself.

The guard noticed that the light along his spine was out, except for a small ominous red glow emanating from his lower back. It didn't take a genius to know what that meant. "Hurry up!" The horse shouted. "Clear a table!" A table with a couple of female tigers was selected and they removed everything from it. The guards carefully lowered him onto the table. Within moments blood was pooling and even leaking onto the floor. "Is there anyone here who is a medical doctor!" A ferret guard shouted. There were many doctors of many professions. Hopefully there was one who new about healing.

"I am!" A female voice pipped up. Alexander lazily turned his head over to the voice. Everything was really blurry so he couldn't quite make out what species of cornerian said that. But he could tell she had black fur.

"Save him sister, he was the one who saved me!" He heard Penelope shout. 'So she's her sister.' Alexander thought absentmindedly.

"I'll do what I can but he's lost allot of blood." She walked up to him and leaned in. "First we are going to have to take off his armor." She said to the guards. Suddenly he shot up and grabbed her collar.

"It stays on." He said lucidly and firmly.

"Alright sir if you insist." She said calmly.

"I do." He said before letting her go and falling back onto the table roughly. "I do." He said again to no one in particular.

"This is going to hurt." The woman warned softly before he felt a sharp pain in his shoulder that brought him out of his delusion momentarily. The spike imbedded in his shoulder had been removed and he could feel it being wrapped on bandages. "Alright I nee..." The voices all combined into an indecipherable jumble as Alexander floated softly into darkness.


	7. Chapter 7

Shattered

Chapter VII

Alexander regained consciousness to a feeling of warmth on his chest. He opened his eyes to see the furry form of Penelope laying on him sleeping. "So your wake." He heard a voice to his left. He turned his helmeted head to see a female black wolf with blood red irises, without a doubt she was Penelope's sister.

"So I am."

"You were the hardest life I've ever had to save. It was a four hour struggle to keep you alive." She said in an almost complaining tone of voice.

"Well My thanks for keeping me still breathing..." He slowly sat up from the bloody table and gently removed the slumbering cub.

"My name is Lupa. You should know Penelope was terrified that you were going to die. I'm surprised how easily she attached herself to you." The bewildered wolfess said as she watched him lay Penelope down on an adjacent clean table. "Thank you for saving her. I couldn't imagine what I would have done if she was gone." Lupa added.

"No thanks are needed. I did what anyone else would have. Plus she has kinda grown on me too. She reminds me of my sister." Alexander replied as he turned to the elder sister after taking care of Penelope.

"Where is she?" The wolfess asked.

"She...is a long ways away." He responded quietly. He stood on his two armor clad feet and groaned in pain as he clutched his chest. He could feel his hand on his chest. That meant that his armor was destroyed. It would take him forever to repair/replace it.

She grabbed him by the shoulders and softly helped him to sit on the bench like seats along the long table. "Be careful your wounds are not completely healed." She cautioned. He, with her help, sat down and sighed.

"I got a little banged up huh?" He chuckled.

"A little? You were practically falling apart when they dragged you in here!" She said angrily hands in her hips, with her tail whipping back and forth rapidly.

He laughed again hoarsely. "Wouldn't be the first time in my line of work."

She looked inquisitive, especially with one of her ears flopped down. "What exactly do you do?"

"I am a professional...monster hunter you could say."

"So you've seen these things before?"

"Oh many times, this is hardly my first tango with necromorphs." He muttered.

"Necromorphs? Is that what their called?"

"Yes indeed, I have been fighting these blasted things for a long time."

"How come we've never heard of them before?"

"They come from a far away place. Not any where close to this one, until now that is." He sighed and leaned back against the table.

"How did you get down here?"

"I was dropped of by Starfox."

"Starfox!"

"Yeah which reminds me I have a job to do. If you would excuse me." Alexander slowly got up and limped away pressing things on his wrist. She followed him curious. What was he doing?

Alexander walked down the cafeteria's long pathway between the tables. He saw that all the cornerians around him were looking at him. The guards looked awed and the civilians reverent. Ignoring the stares he sat down at an empty table and places his pistol and sword on it. He noticed that the pistol was almost empty. He expended allot of ammunition out there. He took the depleted cylinder and replaced it with a fresh one. Then he oiled the gun and made sure it would not jam on him anytime soon.

Satisfied with a job well done he shifted his focus onto his sword. The energy pack was spent and the blade was dulled. He took out the pack and replaced it with a new fresh one. After that he summoned a whetstone out of his digital storage and began to sharpen the blade. Ten minutes later it was good to go. Unfortunately his rifle lay broken and scattered in a hallway somewhere. He did have an extra one but he was saving it since it was his last.

"What are you doing?" She asked.

"Preparing." He answered simply. The poor wolfess was even more confused as she followed him.

With his weapons serviced and functional he walked over to the two guards at the gate. "I have some questions."

The guards were very forthcoming. He learned that this all started a week ago. At first some of the doctors interacting with the artifact exhibited signs of mental fatigue but they ruled it out as the isolation of being underwater in a research facility. Then the suicides began. By then it was too late to stop the snowball effect.

"I need you to open the doors." He ordered.

"Are you serious?" The horse exclaimed.

"Deadly." Alexander deadpanned.

"What are you doing?" Lupa demanded as she caught up to him.

"My job."

"You a haven't even fully recovered!"

"That doesn't matter. I must put a stop to this before they find away off this facility."

"Surely they can't?"

"They will, they always do."

"If you leave then you will die!" She shouted her patience running out.

"Inconsequential."

"You can't mean that?" She said shocked her muzzle hanging open.

"I do." He turned back to the guards. "Open the gate." He commanded again.

"ALEXANDER!" A little voice shouted. Penelope had woken up. "What are you doing?" She asked as she ran to the the source of all the commotion.

When he looked to her he could see all the cornerians staring again. It unsettled him deeply. The predatory eyes of all the species actually made him want to leave. "I have to go." He said as he kneeled down to eye level with the pup.

"Why?"

"I have to stop the monsters from getting in here or escaping."

"No you don't you can wait here until other people come!" She said desperately.

"There isn't enough time for that little one." He said using what he first called her.

"Of course there is, please don't go!" She begged.

"I'm sorry but I have to, I need to."

"Noo!" Penelope said hugging onto him.

"Look at me." He demanded. She looked up into his glowing red visor. Her blue eyes were watery with unshed tears. "Sometimes in life you are forced to make hard decisions. When that time comes you have to do it even if you don't want to. For me this is one of those times. Do you understand?"

She sniffled. "I guess so."

"Good." he wiped away a stray tear with one of his gloved hands before scratching her on the top of her furry head and ruffling it. "Don't worry about me I'll be fine. Although his assurance fooled the little kid the adults could see right threw his charade.

With the pup placated he returned to his feet. The guards reluctantly opened the doors. The large mound of bodies was still there from earlier. He left the cafeteria and looked back. The two guards looked at him with expressions of wonder. Lupa was holding onto Penelope's and was looking at him strangely. He could faintly see the civilians as they crowded around the door and watched his departure. The door closed the last thing he saw was Penelope's tearful face and Lupa's odd expression.

Once more he was surrounded by darkness. Brandishing his refurbished weapons he walked back to the elevator. He could not help but notice how quite it was without the little girl on his back. He entered and pressed the button that read research lab. That was the only logical locational for the marker. A few minutes later the doors split apart and he exited out into a surprisingly clean white hallway. Wary he carefully made his way down it sword ready and pistol out. Nothing attacked him. It was very unsettling.

He wandered down the pristine hauntingly white and empty corridors looking for any trace of the marker. It had to be there! Suddenly he heard wailing coming from a open door a few doorways down. The room was shrouded completely in blackness. The darkness seeping into the brightly lit corridor. The odd treble of the cry was distorted and...off. It almost sounded like a broken radiator given some twisted form of life. Heart pumping rapidly and hands shaking he walked over to the room. Standing directly in front of it he stared into the dark.

The crying stopped.

Alarmed he began to back away quickly. His retreat was stalled when a massive tentacle lunged out of the pitch black room and wrapped around him and lifted him off the floor. Yelling in fright he unloaded his pistol in to the flailing appendage and brutally hacked at it with his powered sword. He cut the limb off and fell to the ground with a thump. He scrabbled backwards shooting into the darkness what reckless abandon. Once he got a suitable distance away he climbed back to his feet. He took a minute to catch his breath. He stumbled away from the hellish door his wounds screaming in protest of their abuse.

The crying began again.

He looked back to the open door and shivered. Once he had calmed his beating heart he resumed his search for the marker. Twenty minutes later he found a door labeled Project Dawn.

He opened it and walked in. There it was. Standing at forty feet in all its perverted glory was the marker. This one was black. Like the one first discovered on earth. Hopefully this meant it was the only one. Trying to finish this quickly he jogged to it.

Halfway there he felt agonizing pain in his abdomen and felt himself pinned again a wall. In a brilliant haze of pain he couldn't help but notice he was several feet off the ground. He looked down to see a massive arm impaling him and holding him in place. He looked up to the owner of the arm and he saw a huge creature unfurl from above the marker. He coughed up blood that splatters Welty against his HUD. A picture appeared that pin pointed the location of the wound and read of a series of warnings. Each worst then the last. His organs were failing and he was losing critical amounts of blood. He was going to die.

The creature heavily impacted the floor drawing his ire.

It was a amalgamation of dozens of bodies. It had three main heads, each bursting with an ungodly amount of arms were a variety of spears. It had many sets of legs from half a dozen species. It skitters towards him like a spider of nightmares. It got close and opens its maws wide and tongues came out that split into three more.

Before it could add him to its macabre collection he swung his sword and severed its grouping of tongues. It let out a pained and nightmarish squeal. Capitalizing on his advantage he cut of the limb pinning him to the wall like a butterfly in an entomologists bug collection. With a grunt and a spray of blood he removed himself from the inconvenience of being impaled he fell to the floor and shoved the barrel of his pistol into one of its many mouths and fired continuously. He emptied the entire cylinders worth of munitions into the behemoths maw.

It fell with a raggedy moan. Alexander closely followed. His stomach hurt, allot. It felt as of someone had heated a branded and rammed it into his intestines. He coughed up more blood. The necromorphs didn't give him a break. Four limped in from the door he arrived in. When the saw him they bellowed and charged. He fought them off on his knees.

The first one had its legs cut out from under it. As it was falling he cut its remaining parts in half. The energized blade bummed dangerously as he swung it around. In short order the necromorphs were eliminated. Alexander smashed his sword into the deck and used it as a means to get up. Once on his feet he hobbled over to the marker. He slipped on a unknown liquid and fell hard on to his back making his spew blood all over his HUD. He looked down to identify the foreign substance. He realized it was his own blood. Feeling woozy and incoherent he dragged himself to the marker. Carefully he took off his pendant and places it into a shielded pouch. Then he placed his took off am armored glove put it into another pouch and placed his hand on the obelisk.

He opened his eye to find himself standing place covered in the mad scrawls that was marker script. At the far end was a tiny little marker. He saw that he was no longer wounded and was wearing his off duty outfit and had his pistol holsters on his thigh. "Hey bro whatcha doing here." A very familiar voices asked.

"Santiago?" Standing behind him was his closest friend. Santiago was wearing a pair of shoes jeans and a white shirt. But the shirt was ringed with marker script. The short Latino man began to speak.

"Duh bro who else would it be?"

"You died on Phoenix station. Along with the rest of the human race."

"Nah man the marker saved me."

"What the hell Santiago! The markers destroyed everything. They don't save people!" Alexander shouted

"Oh but they do!" Santiago said feverishly. "You don get the big picture. The greater design!

Alexander backed away from his friend no longer, or perhaps, never was.

"Your not Santiago."

"But of course I am!"

"No! Santiago died I don't know what you are but your not him!" Alexander denied.

The Santiago imposter shook his head sadly. "I really thought we could do this the easy way."

"Do what?"

The imposter screamed and began to deform. It shifted and morphed like a piece of wet clay. Until finally in its place stood a regenerator. The most feared creations ever conceived by the markers influence. Alexander tried to run away. He ran towards the small marker at the end of the twisted path. Without warning something slammed into his back and sent him careening into the marker. He felt it crack slightly. The regenerator had caught up to him. It howled and brought down a bladed limb that he barely dodged. He pulled his pistol out and blew the limb off. The necromorphs let out a gurgling chuckle and it's limb regrew in seconds. He needed a new strategy.

He looked to the small marker and saw a crack on its side. Testing a theory he shoved the regenerator into the marker. When it hit another crack appeared. Now Alexander had a plan. Which was almost ruined when the pissed off necromorph lashed out at him and almost cut him in half. He scythed the monsters legs off who a barrage of lead. With it immobilized momentarily he shifted his aim to the obelisk and started shooting it. Almost immediately cracks started to erupt across its surface. The crags vented hot red light into the perverse dream world. Before the regenerator could get back up the marker exploded.

Alexander abruptly found himself back in his own body. The marker lay in ruins in front of him. He fell backward and stared up at the dull gunmetal grey ceiling. He felt drenched. He looked lowers his head to look at his chest. Blood was pooling on him and around him. He closed his eyes for what felt like a second. Before he could sleep he felt a pair of hand shaking him.

Annoyed at the disturbance he tried to wave them off. He just wanted to sleep for a few minutes. Unfortunately the hands were persistent. He opened his eyes to scold the person. He was startled. Krystal? 'What was she doing here? And why was she crying?' Tears were dripping down her muzzle and her eyes looked like Pools of jade. He reached out a hand and stroked her cheek ruff. He didn't like it when she cried. He looked to his left and right and saw Falco and Fox. They were standing over him and looked worried. 'They were here too? What was going on? He was so tired maybe they wouldn't mind if he took a little nap. He began to drift off and his head slowly lowered to the floor. For some reason Krystal started to shake him harder.

Now he could hear her yelling. "No don't die! You can't die!" Her voice was broken up by sobs and hiccups. "We were supposed to be best friends! We can't if your dead."

Falco leaned in. "Don't you dare die on me! We still have stories to swap."

Die? He wasn't dying he just wanted to sleep. He turned his head back to Krystal one last time and she grabbed his ungloved bloody hand. His blood stained her clean beautiful perfect fur. "Please." She whispered hoarsely "don't go." Her tears fell on to his helmet and cascaded down the sides.

He squeezed her hand and then his hand went limp in her strong furred grip.

His suit emitted a harsh whine.

He flatlined.


	8. Chapter 8

Shattered

Chapter VIII

"Alexander? Alexander? ALEXANDER!" Krystal was shaking his lifeless body screaming and crying. Tears were following like a river off of her muzzle and striking the prone form of the last human. Falco and Fox stood there numb.

"What do we do?" Falco shouted.

"Maybe we can help him on The Great Fox." Fox said with little confidence.

"We can't carry him by ourselves."

"We can try."

Suddenly the door opened and four heavy armored cornerians strode in with two black wolves. One was older in a lab coat, and the other was young at about ten years of age.

When the younger wolf saw Alexander on the floor she screamed and ran over to cradle his head. The older one walked up to fox. "What the hell happened? And what are you doing here? He told me starfox was here but that they weren't inside the facility."

"When we saw him go into the artifact room we rushed down here in the blue-marine to help, even though he told us not to. As we got closer we saw him fight that thing," he pointed at the massive dead necromorph. It pinned him to the wall but he managed to kill it. Then he was attacked again by a pack of these things. As we finally entered the room he put his hand on the artifact and froze for a few seconds. Then it just fell apart and he fell to the ground. What are you doing here?"

"Now is not the time for explanations, we need to get him to your ship." Lupa said quickly. "We should be able to revive him there."

"Agreed. At least with your help we can pick him up."

Lupa motioned for the guard to lift the limp body and they did. A distraught Krystal and Penelope followed closely behind. As the group rushed out of the room with their unmoving cargo Fox questioned the wolf woman again.

"So how did you get here?"

"When he left my little sister Penelope was distraught. After her unending pleading I finally managed to convince. A team of guards to help him. Unfortunately it seems we were too late." They arrived at one of the docking tubes, the one that held the blue-marine. The guards stashed Alexander inside and exited. "I wish I could come with, but I should wait with the others until the authorities arrive." She said sadly.

"Lupa, you can go with them. We can watch over the people." The horse guard from earlier said.

"Are you certain?"

"Yeah we'll be fine." He reassured.

"I don't know." She mummered.

"Come on sis what are you waiting for!" The pup shouted. She was already in the ship with Krystal who was hugging onto Alexander's chest and sniffling.

"Alright then." She climbed in with the others and the ship quickly left. It traveled at great speed to the Great Fox. As soon as it docked they all lifted the prone form of Alexander and rushed him out and to the medbay.

Along the way Miyu, Fay, Slippy, and Peppy showed up. They placed him onto a gurney and wheeled him to the auto surgeon. Remembering something Fox pressed the button on his helmet and it broke apart and returned to its storage area inside the gorget. This revealed his golden eyed human face. Lupa and Penelope gasped in surprise. Miyu and Fay only started a little bit because they already knew he was an alien.

"What is he?" Lupa wondered aloud.

"He's an alien." Fox answers as the surgeon efficiently cleaned up its patient and began the healing process. It pressed two pads to his chest and with a thump shocked him. He was hooked up to the life support system. With another jolt his heart beat once and flatlined. "Come on man wake up." Fox urged.

Krystal was hugging herself tightly with her own tail. Her tears had subsided but she was still sniffling and hiccuping softly. Alexander was shocked again. This time his heart beat steadily. "Thank god!" Slippy exclaimed. Krystal rushed to the bed and hugged his comatose form. She was now crying tears of joy and relief. Penelope had also run up and was holding onto his ungloved hand. She was smiling.

"We still have to get him back to Corneria. The medical facilities are much better there." peppy input.

Lupa and Fox agreed. Leaving Penelope and Krystal in the medbay the others quickly headed to the bridge and ordered rob to head to Corneria, overclocking the engines again. Soon they found themselves back in cornerian space. Fox immediately contacted general Pepper.

"Yes fox?" The old canine asked.

"Sir! We need you to prepare cornerian medical for a critical patient and get ready for one hell of a media storm."

"Whatever for?" The bloodhound asked confused.

"Sir I can explain in depth more but the outline is this. There was one of those marker things on Aquas."

"Good lord!" The General exclaimed. "What happened?"

Fox filled him in on the specifics. "And when was got down there the marker was destroyed and he was in the ground." He finished.

Pepper was deep in thought. "Hmm...I'll send a small fleet to retrieve the personnel left behind. And from what I gather we owe this human a great deal."

"Yes we do sir. Who knows what would have happened if he never came." Fox agreed.

"Get him down to Corneria medical I'll be heading there as soon as I can. Feel free to take a transport directly to the roof access I'll have a group of doctors assembled there. Talk to you soon." Pepper disconnected.

Fox fell into his chair with a sigh. Miyu walked up to him, Fay trailing behind. "So Fox tell me more about this human."

"I would also like to know more." Lupa added.

"Alright you can come with me when we take him down. When he wakes up you can ask him yourself. "He turned to Falco and the other guys. "Falco your in charge while I'm gone."

"You betcha, let me know when the big guy wakes up. Tell him the first rounds on me."

Fox got back up and headed down to the medbay with the women. He walked in to see Krystal sitting next to Alexander's bed. Penelope had fallen asleep on her lap. "How are you holding up?"

She looked up, "I'm alright now. Penelope fell asleep a couple minutes ago."

"Alright well we're taking him to the hospital right now. I'm sure you wold like to tag along." She nodded her head and stood up holding the sleeping kid. She walked over to Lupa who took her sister.

"Thank you for taking care of her." Lupa said gratefully.

Krystal smiled. "Of course."

With that taken care of fox wheeled the bed out of the room and down to the hanger. They went over to a larger ship, the transport. He strapped in the bed and secured it and headed to the cockpit. The girls stayed down with Alexander. Krystal was softly stroking his head as she looked at him. The other women could see why she liked him so much. He was extremely selfless and was surprisingly handsome. Especially with those golden eyes and strong facial features. Miyu wouldn't have minded spending some time with him.

"You must really like him." Lupa remarked.

Krystal blushed brightly. "Is it that obvious?"

"Kinda." Miyu said sarcastically.

"I think its cute." Fay said smiling. "And so is he." She muttered quietly to herself.

"Huh?" Miyu said.

"Uh nothing!" Fay said quickly. Her tail was frizzed and she blushed faintly.

The intercom buzzed. "Alright ladies well be landing in a few."

"Alright Fox!" Miyu yelled up to the cockpit. She turned back to the others. "Looks like we're almost there." The rest of the ride was spent in silence as each person was deep in thought.

The engines cycling off shook them out of their reverie. When they had shut down fully Fox emerged from the cockpit and went to the bed. He unstrapped it and wheeled it to the the big sliding doors. Penelope was still sleeping heavily. Lupa picked her back up and went to the doors. Fox opened them and walked out. The others followed to see five doctors waiting for them. Three dogs a cat and a bull. The bull must have been in charge because he was the first to speak.

"General Pepper informed me of the situation. I take it this is the human?"

"Yes doctor Merlow." Fox said as he read the name tag.

"Amazing! He truly is alien."

"Yes well we can talk about that after you help him." Miyu scolded him.

"You are absolutely right." He signaled for two of his assistant to take over the business of ferrying the patient. "Please follow me."

They traveled down an elevator and went through a few hallways filled with gawking patients and doctors. All eyes were on the sleeping human. It was difficult but they managed to get through the crowd and into a solitary room. They transferred him into the bed and hooked him up to the monitoring equipment.

The removed his rent and battered armor leaving him in a very skintight suit. The women blushed and then looked horrified. There was gaping rips in the underweave and they could see dried blood. The doctor cleaned it up and did what they could.

"If you would please take the seats to the side we can get to work." Marlow told the Starfox team. They complied and sat to the side. They listened to the doctor as they conversed among themselves.

"Multiple lacerations."

"Severe muscular damage."

"Critical blood loss."

"Trace bone fractures."

"Internal hemorrhaging."

"Collapsed lung."

As the doctors listed the numerous injuries. The team got progressively amazed and depressed. How was he still alive? That should have been enough to kill five men. The doctors themselves were baffled. Then they stumbled upon something. The rig that was still attached was releasing a chemical cocktail that was slowly but surely healing him. This allowed them to focus on the smaller wounds. One of the doctors that was scanning his brain suddenly yelped in surprise. The black lab called Marlow over and they talked in hushed tones.

Worried the team watched them intently. Eventually Merlow sighed and walked over to them ominously. "What is doctor?" Krystal asked voice filled with concern.

"He is healing but we discovered something about his brain."

"What?" Fox asked.

"He's dying." Marlow said bluntly.

"What you said he would be fine!" Miyu exclaimed.

"Yes his body will heal but his brain is shutting down. It's happening at an incredibly slow rate, we almost didn't catch it."

"Why!" Krystal implored she was close to tears again.

"Honestly we don't know why. There is no discernible reason but he is. Maybe when he wakes up you can ask him."

With that deflating shred of news the team was numbed. "We did what we could and he is on the road to mending. He should awake within the hour."

The doctors left and then they moved their chairs to the sleeping human. He looked so peaceful. It was hard to believe he was dying.

Alexander opened his eyes to find himself in a hospital. He was confused. How did he end up here? Last think he remembered was passing out in the marker room.

"Alex!" He heard a feminine voice shout before he felt warm furry arms wrap around him followed by a blue furred body.

"Hey Krystal." He said his usually strong deep voice sounded weak and infirm.

"We thought we lost you!" She squeezed him firmly.

"Sorry to disappoint you." He chuckled.

"Good to see you awake." He heard Fox say. He looked over Krystal's shoulders to see Fox, that Wolf woman from the facility, Penelope who was sleeping in her arms, and two vaguely familiar girls, a lynx and collie.

"I didn't think I warranted this much attention."

"Your only the only human here." Fox said as he rolled his eyes jokingly.

Suddenly Alex saw a flicker of movement by the door. He dismissed it. "So...where am I?"

"You are in a hospital on Corneria." Lupa informed him.

"Huh." He grunted. He was distracted by strange writing on the walls. Wait...strange writing? He went to touch his necklace and froze. Where was it? The he remembered he left it in his armor, which was on the small table across from him. He panicked. He gently pushed Krystal away she protested which he ignored. He could see Santiago standing in the doorway smiling sickly.

"What are you doing," Krystal asked upset that he pushed her away. The others also wondered but were studiously ignored. He almost fell off the bed as he tried to get up. Fox supported him. He didn't stop to thanks Fox as he stumbled over to his armor. Confused they watched him rummage around in a pouch and take out a necklace. He hastily and sloppily put it on.

"What the hell was that about!" Miyu demanded.

They watched as he went back to the bed and laid down with a sigh of relief. "Seriously what was that about?" Fox asked.

"I don't think I can tell you." Alex replied quietly. "I don't think you will understand."

"Sure you can tell us." Krystal said, she seemed to have forgiven him for his earlier rudeness.

"You can trust us." Fox backed her up.

"What about them?" He gestured to Miyu and Fay.

"Of course you can! We're long time friends of fox!" Fay said perkily.

He sighed again. "I suppose you deserve to know. I have a...condition."

"Condition?" Lupa inquired.

"Yes over the course of the marker war soldiers who had prolonged exposure to their influence developed symptoms. Hallucination, bouts of insanity and violence, self harm, and several kinds of psychosis to name a few."

Krystal put a paw to her mouth. "Oh no you mean..."

"Yes I do, I was one of those men." They all gasped.

"Why haven't we noticed it before?" Fox asked.

"That's because of this." He flashed the necklace. "It counteracts the signal stuck in my brain,...but it has a drawback."

"What is it?" Miyu wondered.

"It is very, very slowly shutting down my brain."

"So thats what the doctor couldn't figure out!" Lupa grasped.

"So your going to die?" Krystal was teary eyed.

"I'm afraid so, but don't worry about it it won't happen for a little while yet." He said nonchalantly.

"Don't worry about!" Krystal shouted, she was really upset now. "Your just said you were going to die how can we not."

"I've accepted it so will you. That is unless of course you have the cure to my affliction." He replied scathingly. "You are not the one dying! You didn't fight those things, watch them consume everything you've ever known and loved, and finally after you though it was over, that you could finally die and not have to worry about it all anymore, find yourself in some weird place with aliens lost and alone!" He was out of breath and panting as he finally vented.

He stunned everyone with his outburst. It allowed them to see what it was like for him. To truly understand his grief and sorrow. "Oh but your not alone." Krystal said softly and hugged him. "You have us now and we will fix you. Right Fox?"

Fox nodded with determination. "She's right we will help you. You are apart of the starfox team, our family. And we take care of our family."

"Yeah fox is right! We'll help yah!" Fay said with her customary enthusiasm.

"We sure will!" Miyu added.

They saw him frown until he smiled. It was warm enough to fill the whole room. "Really?"

"Really." Krystal replied.

He stroked her furry back softly. He looked close to tears. "Thanks, that means more to me then you guys will ever know."

Suddenly out of the blue Lupa asked Fox something. "Can I join starfox?"

"Why?"

"It seems like you could use a good doctor, Penelope is strongly attached to him, and I would like to help."

He considered her proposal. "We could use a doctor. Welcome to the team!"

She smiled. "Thank you, you won't regret it."

"I would also ask," Alex said getting their attention, "that Penelope not find out about my condition."

They all agreed. Ironically seconds after she was mentioned she woke up. "Yay! Your awake!" She ran at him and knocked him and Krystal over in a big pile of fur.

He chuckled warmly. "Yes I am." He picked her up and held her at eye level.

"Your all better now?" She asked innocently.

"Yep I'm one hundred percent okay, nothin wrong with me at all." He said before swirling her around playfully making her squeal with childish laughter. The group took this in with smiled all around. There was a few tears from the women, they knew he was lying for her sake.

That happy moment was interrupted when a young cat came in wearing military apparel. "Mr. Fox sir?"

"Yes, who wants to know?"

"General Pepper is here." The cat replied.

Alex let Penelope down much to her disappointment. "Well then lets not keep him waiting."


	9. Chapter 9

Shattered

Chapter IX

As they all headed for the door Alex stopped. "Give me a minute guys.

They looked over and Fox asked, "what's up?"

"I kinda you know..." he gestured to his tattered undersuit.

Fox practically smacked himself in the head. "Right of course! We'll be waiting outside." They all filed out leaving him alone in he room. Once alone Alex exhaled heavily and walked over to his destroyed armor. He took off the modules and retrieved his off duty uniform. Then he stored his damaged armor. Once that was finished he stripped down and put it on. Halfway through the girls, being impatient stuck, their heads in.

"Come on Alex! Whaaa..." Miyu said before she froze. They stood there like deer in headlights. The girls meeped and with blushing fuzzy cheeks ducked out.

He just chuckled ruefully and finished getting dressed. When he finished he looked at himself in the small mirror by the bed, adjusted his cap, and straightened out his uniform. He wanted to look presentable for the General. His eyes lingered on his own face. He looked a little haggard and was developing a five o'clock shadow. Since he didn't have his shaving kit he let it be.

He walked into the hallway to see Fox and the young cat smirking at the embarrassed expressions on all the girls muzzles. They wouldn't look at him. Penelope being too young to understand was looking at them puzzled. "If you girls are done gawking we can get moving now." Fox said still smirking. They all nodded hurriedly and followed after the smiling feline soldier.

They followed him through busy hallways filled with doctors who were rushing around and going about their duties. Occasionally one would look up and see Alex and stop abruptly. Stunned at seeing the alien they heard about in the news. The feline private waved them off and they scurried away. "You're popular." Fox said to Alex.

"I don't know Fox I'm only an alien." He replied stressing alien.

"Yeah yeah yeah." Fox said dismissing him.

Soon they arrived at a conference room repurposed by the military. Two heavily armored and armed cornerians flanked the doorway. Their race indistinguishable from their concealing helmets and bulky armor. They wielded massive menacing rifles and had webbing filled with charge packs. Their armor was black and had a snarling wolf's head wreathed in flames on the pauldrons. "Damn, Pepper brought some of the 48th." Fox said in awe.

"48th?" Alex asked.

"Yeah otherwise known as the howling wolves. Black ops commandos, the best of the best. Everyone of them is a hero. Each had received the cornerian Exemplary Service Star, and the Medal of Honor." Fox explained.

Alex looked them over again, this time from a soldiers perspective. They had the aura of veterans and stood stock still not moving an inch. Even though their heads did not move he knew they see scanning the hallway ever alert. "Interesting." Alex said to himself. The two commandos surveyed the group before standing aside from the door. Taking it as a sign for all clear they walked inside.

In the room sat General Pepper, a wolf in the armor of the 48th, his helmet sat on the table, and several more commandos. "Welcome please take your seats." Pepper said.

They sat down on the opposite side of the table. Penelope sat on her sisters lap. "Alexander, I heard about the situation on Aquas, the cornerian people and I owe you a great debt. One I fear can never be repayed." Pepper said, and Alexander could tell that he really meant it.

"No thanks are needed sir, I just did the right thing. It wasn't anything special." Alex said humbly.

"But your wrong! It was something special. Who knows what would have happened if you never showed up to warn us." Pepper argued.

"Doing ones duty is nothing special sir." Alex pointed out stoically. The wolf next to Pepper nodded his head in agreement.

"In any case Alexander we are thankful. The president himself has requested to meet with you. He would like to award you for your heroic actions."

"If that is what you wish." Alex said.

The wolf then butted in. "Alexander be that as it may we are here for another reason." He said in a rough voice. Like broken glass. The wolf had a deep scar running alongside his jaw that ended at his brown eyes.

"What would that be sir?" He asked.

"I came here with Pepper in the hopes that you have a mission tape we could see."

"I always have one for after action reports sir."

"Excellent." The wolf said pleased. "Pepper and I want to see it now."

"Now?" Alex said worriedly. He looked to the members of starfox. He did not know that they had already seen if. "It is pretty raw."

"I think a room of veterans will be fine. But I'm afraid the little girl will have to wait outside." The wolf said.

"I'll take her sir." The feline private said.

"Good."

With much coaxing they managed to get her to leave. With one last glance back she left the room with the young cat soldier. Who could be heard saying, "how about we go get some ice cream huh?"

When she left Alex reluctantly got ready. The table was empty so he activated his portable storage. The wolf was very interested in it. But everyone was amazed when he took out his wrecked armor. It was completely totaled. The entire chestplate was shredded and had gaping holes and was doused in dried blood. The rest was in equally dire straits. "That suit has been through hell." The wolf commented.

"Sure felt like it."'Alex responded. Then he reached into the clavicle and removed the audio visual storage and playback module. He keyed in the security code and the video started.

It began with him walking down the corridors for a while before he heard the blaster fire. Which caused him to run over to find the tiger who died. The wolf asked it to be paused at the moment Alex was walking away from the flaming body.

"Why did you set him on fire after he died?"

"Standard O.P during a necromorph outbreak. They can't use the bodies if their gone." The wolf hummed and said continue.

Now Alex was running down the hallways trying to find the little girl. That's when he was tackled abruptly by a necromorph. This was the wolf commando's first look at the necromorphs. His expressions ranged from disgust and sorrow. These were their people contorted into unholy abominations. It brought him a small form of comfort and satisfaction to see it so thoroughly destroyed.

Alex continued his search until he arrived at the door. He fought them off and was wounded in the leg. He ripped it out and threw it into the offending necro's face killing it. The commandos in the background laughed. Then Alex walked into the room. Lupa felt a pang of fear as she saw the monster reach for her sister who tried to fend it off. Alex ran up and tackled it to the floor. They tussled until he roared and pummeled its face into mush. The wolf nodded with approval and Pepper and the others were surprised by his violence. Then he got up and got her to climb on his back.

Krystal smiled as she listened to their conversation. Then he stopped as he detected the ambush. He lost his rifle defending Penelope from a slash. He ran past the enemy receiving many wounds. He found the cafeteria and after a few minutes got the little girl inside. Then he fought off the assault. His skill and determination was noted by the members of the 48th. Alex killed all the undead around him and knocked on the door. He was let in but was seriously injured. He collapsed and was taken to a table. They did their best to help him. When he woke up he tended to his weapons and made to leave again. There was a small argument but he was let through.

He made it to the research lab without incident. That was until he found the door. The crying brought shivers down the collective shoulders of everyone present. He went over and was attacked by the tentacle. He cut it off and scrambled away. After that he wandered around until he located the place where the marker resided. He entered and saw it. He ran to it and was rapidly impaled by the beast in hiding. This elicited a gasp from them all, even the ones who saw it already. When it got close Alex rammed the barrel of his gun into one of its many mouths and unloaded. When it fell he was forced to fight off another wave of regulars, which he did on his knees. Once that was done he limped over to the artifact removed his necklace and glove and touched it. He ended the video after he fell down.

He didn't feel like showing Krystal's crying and panicking. Truthfully he didn't want to see it again either. "That's it sir."

Pepper took a long time to digest it all. "Son I was wrong."

"Sir?"

"We owe you more then I previously thought." Alex stopped trying to argue against it and just listened. "What you stopped was truly one of the most terrifying things I could imagine that would have devastated all of Lylat. The president will want to see this."

"Sir what happens if this gets to the media?" Alex asked.

"Of course it will, I'm afraid to say they will want you there when it plays."

"Why would the media get this?"

"Why wouldn't they?" Pepper asked.

"Back in my place we never showed this kind of stuff to the civvies." He explained.

"That's not how we do it here son. The media usually gets full coverage unless its a matter of planetary security."

"Hmmm." Alex grunted noncommittally.

"I believe commander Dobray has something to say." Pepper informed them.

The wolf spoke. "First off I would like to say you are one hell of a soldier and would be right at home in the 48th." The commandos in the back signaled their agreement with a clash of fists to breastplates.

"Thank you sir."

"Secondly, can we expect to find more of these?"

"I don't think so, humanity only ever found one. The others were built. Now that you know about them and what they do I'm sure that no one will make them. So there shouldn't ever be another one."

"I have one last question." Alex nodded for him to go ahead. "What happened when you touched I and why did you take off your necklace?"

Alex was afraid they would ask. So he had to tell them about his condition. They were not happy. "Is there no way we can help you? There must be!" Pepper said frustrated that the man who did so much was going to die.

"My people managed to find a solution but it was lost when out homeworld fell." Alex said sadly.

"That doesn't matter I'll have out best doctors and scientist find away to fix this problem." Pepper said with absolute confidence.

Once more these cornerians astounded Alex with their helpfulness and care. Humans were by nature very different. Honestly it was refreshing and comforting to have so many people invested with his wellbeing. "That means allot to hear from you sir." Alex said holding his hand out.

Pepper shook it. "The pleasure and honor is mine soldier you would have made your people proud."

"Thank you sir."

"After this I'm sure you would like to rest." Pepper guessed.

"Your right on the money sir. I could do with a little RnR."

"Well then I'll be happy to inform you that for your conduct starfox will receive 500,000 credits."

"Five hundred thousand!" Fox shouted his muzzle almost hitting the floor.

"Yes and an additional 250,000 will be transferred to Alexander here when he gets an account set up."

Alex didn't know what to think. He never had that much money before. Sadly all he could think about was what he could have done for his family with that kind of bank. "I don't know what to say sir."

"You don't have to say anything that's the least I could do, although commander Dobrey has something to ask you."

Alex looked to him. "What do you need sir?"

"Nothing now, I jut wanted to let you know that if you so wish you can have a spot in the 48th."

Alex really considered this. Back in a military outfit. To what he was used to, where he could do good. Then he looked to Fox and the others, or more specifically Krystal. She looked very worried. More so then Fox. He thought back to earlier when they all pledged their support and all the care they showed.

"Sorry sir but maybe another time. Right now I'm happy where I am." He was looking at Krystal when he said that. She smiled broadly and was glowing with happiness.

"I understand. The spot will be open of you ever so desire to reconsider."

"Thank you sir."

Pepper brought he meeting to a close. "All right then ladies and gentlemen this concludes the briefing." As starfox was leaving Alex walked over to general Pepper and Commander Dobrey. "Here sirs." He have them the recording. "Just in case."

Dobrey nodded. "Just in case." And took it. Storing his armor Alex then walked out to see Penelope eating white colored ice cream while chattering away at an overwhelmed feline. He looked to anyone for help with a desperate look on his face. They were all to busy laughing to save him.

"And then Alex smashed its head and it went splat!" Okay that was a little disturbing. Alex went over to her. "Yay Alex!" She ran over and collided into him almost bouncing of his muscular frame. The private looked at him with a thankful grin.

"I am back! But now I'm gonna get you!" He growled playfully and chased her down the hallway, she was giggling as she ran. Krystal couldn't help but think of how a much of a great father he would be. The other women had similar thougts as they watched the human and wolf cub scamper around the place drawing smiles and laughter from the staff and even some of the patients. It was hard to believe that this man was the one who waded through hordes of demonic space zombies and almost died, and was still dying.

With a particularly loud shriek he finally caught her and came back. They both were laughing happily and were smiling like a bunch of goofballs. Suddenly Krystal had an urge to cry.

"So Fox what's the plan?" Alex asked while mercilessly tickling the helpless pup in his hands.

"Well we should head back to the great fox to let the others know your alright."

"Sound good to me." Alex said. Penelope wiggled out of his grip and climbed up his tall body to sit on his shoulders.

"Mush! Mush!" She yelled directing him back to the ship.

"Oh ye be a harsh mistress." Alex grumbled jokingly before following Fox to the roof. The women were behind him and were laughing and smiling as they witnessed the antics of the two vastly different people. A little innocent wolf girl and a big human soldier.


	10. Chapter 10

AN: A little shorter then usual but I feel that it was a good place to stop.

Shattered

Chapter X

Alex climbed into the dropship. Penelope had gotten off his shoulders and sat in his lap once he was seated. The others had took seats around him and Fox went back into the cockpit. He noticed that Krystal was awfully close to him. Brushing against him or laying her tail on him. He didn't mind, it was nice. Eventually she rested her furred head on his shoulder. Feeling tired after all the events he began to drift off to dreamland. His head fell softly on top of hers.

Krystal was awake and enjoying it. She smiled and wrapped her arms securely around him. The other women looked to her slightly jealous. "You can't hog him to yourself forever." Miyu grumbled good naturedly.

"Oh I won't." Krystal replied, "he's too good to keep to myself."

"What are you guys talking about?" Penelope asked her, ears flopped in confusion.

"Nothing pen, why don't you take a nap." Lupa replied.

"Okay then." Still a little curious, but more tired then interested, Penelope curled up into a fluffy ball on his lap and was snoring in no time.

"Do you mean it Krys?" Miyu asked surprised.

"Yes I do, he is such a good man. Better then we will find anywhere else I think. So if you like him as much as I do, I would understand." Krystal explained and squeezed the human tighter murring contentedly.

With a grunt of pain he woke back up. "...Ow."

"Oh my! I'm so sorry, I forget you were still hurt!" Krystal exclaimed in sorrow.

"That's okay, you fur is soft." He was still drowsy and so wasn't making much sense. He began petting her head. Her tail started to wag happily and she leaned into it making her murr louder.

The other women looked at her enviously. "So Miyu, Fay," he caught their attention. "I never really got to talk with you, so I thought now would be a good time." He let Krystal continue to hug him. He was beginning to truly appreciate her care and affection. He without fully realizing it, was falling for her

"Nows a time as good as any I suppose." Miyu agreed. "What do you wanna know?"

"Nothing much just normal things."

"Alright then, well I've known Fox since the academy. After that he restarted his fathers mercenary company, and he offered me a spot. I accepted and so here I am." Miyu replied. "Not much else after that."

"Sounds like you had a good life, what about you Fay?"

"Oh me? There nothing special about me, I just tagged along with Miyu."

"Nonsense, everyone is special, that's what my mom told me and I tend to think she was right. So that makes you special." He told the now blushing collie.

She looked up and smiled. "You think so? That I'm special?"

"Of course, all you women are special," he said looking to them. "You, not really knowing me that well, have pledged your help and expressed your concern. Back in my reality, I had no one like that except for my family...and Santiago." He praised with a glowing grin on his face.

"Well we look out for our own, and you are one of us now." Miyu said with a small smile.

He returned it and they spent rest of the voyage in companionable silence. Soon they felt the ship shut down. Fox clambered down from the cockpit. "Rides over guys, let's get out." He opened the door and walked out.

"You heard him." Alex said as he got up slowly holding Penelope, who was still resting.

"Yeah let's go." Krystal agreed and stood up leaning backwards popping her joints in a most unladylike fashion.

Quickly they exited the ship to see Falco talking with Fox. Slippy and Peppy rushed over to Alex. "Hey! You're all right!" Peppy also looked relieved.

"It's good to see you alive and well."

"It's good to be alive and well!" Alex chuckled mirthfully. And then he frowned for a moment "at least for now," he mumbled under his breath. The women frowned sadly as they looked at him, they remembered his condition.

Then he smiled again hiding away his sorrow under a thin facade of happiness. "Anyways that aside, it's good to be back." He then wavered in his legs and almost fell over, luckily Krystal and Miyu grabbed him and held him up. Alex barely managed to keep Penelope from falling out of his grip. "Yet it seems I have not fully recovered, I will need some time to sleep it off."

"Well the most important thing is your okay, we'll talk to you later." Peppy said taking Slippy with him and heading off to rejoin Fox and Falco.

"I am terribly sorry to be a bother, but could you perhaps assist me in the small matter of locating my room?" He asked. He handed over Penelope to her sister as he could not hold her safely any longer.

"Absolutely we can help!" Fay exclaimed helping Miyu and Krystal, Lupa trailing behind. Shortly with their help he got to his room without a problem. Lupa reached over her sister and opened the door. The party went inside, three of the girls helping him to his bed. With a tired sigh he sat down on it. Once he was sitting the girls let go of him.

"Thanks for the help."

"Anytime!" Fay said cheerily.

He laid back on his bed and just stared at the ceiling. While he was laying there the girls decided to take a quick look around his room. It was still pretty much the way it was before he arrived, the key differences being the medal on the wall and a few pictures. Interested they examined them.

The first one was of Alex and a bunch of others. He was in the middle surrounded by a group of similarly armored men and women. It was interesting to see other people of his race. But the most gripping aspect of the photo was his smile. It was wide, welcoming, and warm, brighter then any they had seen on him so far. He looked so happy with his friends. It tore at their hearts to be able to see the change in him.

Quickly they looked at another one. It was off to the side and had a older human female and a small child. They were smiling and looking at the camera.

"That's my mom and sister." Alex mumbled sadly from behind them. "You know, my mom was a wonderful woman. She was just as kind as she was beautiful." He took on a melancholic tone. The women listened to his story.

"I remember whenever I had a problem at school or I hurt myself she would always smile. And say that everything was okay and that I would be okay. She never cried, not once for as long as I remembered. When she called me during the outbreak on New Athens she smiled the entire length of the call. Not once did she even shed a tear as she held my little sister. She just kept on going about how proud she was of me and that she would never be far away. She maintained that smile as the necromorphs smashed down the apartment door and swarmed inside."

For the first time ever they saw tears openly flowing down his face. But he was still smiling. "God I miss them." He muttered hoarsely.

Even they felt like crying, they all moved to hug him. Penelope, still in her sisters arms had awoken. And upon seeing his tearful face hugged him too. "What's wrong big brother?" She wondered.

"Brother?" He said surprised.

"Mommy always said a brother was family who always looked out for you and made you laugh and played with you and protected you and..." She began to go on and on, not noticing that she was making him cry harder. When she finally did she asked worriedly, "did I do something wrong?" In her innocent and care free voice.

"No little one." He chocked out, "I'm alright now." He looked to the women embracing him, wrapped up in a furry blanket of warmth and maybe...love and said "I'm gonna be okay."


	11. Chapter 11

Shattered

Chapter XI

They broke up the group hug. Alex looked at them thankfully. "You guys are amazing." He said smiling.

"We know!" Fay said brightly.

"Obviously." He chuckled. "Thank you for the support, but I'm tired and would like to rest. They nodded understandingly and he opened the door and let them leave. He began to feel an itching in his throat.

As soon as the door close he began to hack violently. Alex tripped backwards onto the bed and landed with a soft thump. He put a hand to his mouth, still coughing, and felt a warm wet splatter on his palm. He removed his hand and looked, their was a worrying amount of blood coating it and slowly running down his forearm. He rushed to the bathroom and cleaned up. The water he used to scrub his arm slowly turned a disturbing shade of pink. His lungs felt like they were on fire and full of holes. He was wheezing as he looked at his pale reflection in the wall mirror.

The sickness was turning aggressive.

He cleaned himself up and crawled into the bed. It seemed that it was accelerating. Maybe, he would get a few good years before he died, he though as he drifted of into restless slumber.

Krystal and the others had left his room and helped Lupa to settle in. She and her sister got one of the extra rooms on the crew deck. They assisted her with making it a little more homely. Krystal donated a vase of flowers, Miyu gave her a poster of an Arwing, and Fay had given her one of the pictures she painted of a garden. Lupa thanked them all profusely and was quick to get Penelope a bed as well.

With that done they all went to the kitchenette and began to make a meal, they had noticed that Alex had not eaten since before his... Sojourn to the facility, where he had his almost fatal injury. This sparked the memory that he was in fact dying, albeit slowly, and dampened their spirits. Still they persevered and created a dish from Krystal's homeworld. Something called Paclac, it had some strange purple noodles and blue sauce.

With Krystal's instructions they were able to make it successfully. Miyu tasted and found that it was not half bad. "Where did you get the ingredients?" She asked.

"Well I found similar ones at a market on Corneria."

Fay tasted it too. "Wow it's really good!"

Krystal looked bashful. "It can't be that good."

Lupa gave it a try. "she right, it's amazing!"

Penelope wanting in on the action grabbed the spoon from her sister and struggled to reach into the pot, made difficult due to the fact that she was short. "A little help here!" She grumbled indignantly.

With a laugh Fay snatched her up and leaned her over the pot of Paclac. Penelope dunked the spoon in and got to finally taste it. Her young muzzles opened in delight. "It's awesome!" She squeaked.

Krystal grinned happily. They actually liked it. Now she just had to get Alex to try it. "I'll be back, I'm gonna go wake up Alex, I'm sure he won't mind if its some food. The other girls stayed behind taking small nibbles from the pot of exotic food.

Quickly, in fear of the food vanishing down the maws and gullets of the voracious women Krystal headed for Alex's room. As she got closer she heard something distressing. Her sensitive vulpine ears could here a terrible coughing noise through the door of the room. It sounded as if he was drowning and being chocked at the same time. Concerned she banged on his door. "Are you alright?" She asked loudly.

The coughing ceased. After a moment a hoarse voice responded. "I'm fine, just...uh had some something go down the wrong tube." It didn't sound very convincing.

"I'm coming in!" Krystal said firmly and opened the door.

"No don't!" He croaked.

She did anyways.

Ales was leaning over in the bed, he was in a tank top and she could see his skin glistening with sweat. Most alarming was the pool of blood in his lap. "Alex!" She exclaimed in terror and rushed over to his bedside.

"I'm Alright." He said woozily, blood dripping down his chin. "Just a little cough.

"A little?" She said tearfully. He was not looking good.

"Yeah a little. Don't worry I'll be fine. He got up, with her help, and wrapped up the sheets trapping the blood between the white folds. "I'll clean this up." His hands were shaking.

She grabbed his quivering hands and steadied them, they were ice cold. "Here let me help." She said softly. She helped him get the sheets and out it all into a ball. "Go get cleaned up."

He nodded tiredly and went into the bathroom. Once he was out of sight she let her calm exterior go. She collapsed onto the barren bed weakly. It was worse then she thought, but why? From what he said it should take a long time to reach that level.

"Krystal?" She looked up to see him standing in the bathrooms doorway. He looked much better. He had cleaned the blood off and dried the sweat. He almost appeared as of nothing had happened.

"Yeah?"

"You okay?"

She scoffed ruefully. He was more concerned about her then himself. "Yes."

"Good." He mumbled. "Uh, can you keep this between us?"

"I don't know."

"Alright, just don't let Penelope find out. I don't want her to get upset." Alex said.

There he went again. Always about others. "I won't tell her."

"Good, good. So...what did you need?"

"I was just coming to tell you that I made some food."

"That sounds wonderful." He walked over to her and helped her to her feet. Halfway up she pulled him into a bear hug. She sniffled and buried her muzzle into his chest.

"Shh...it's going to be alright." He soothed and stroked her back. For a moment she realized how absurd it was for the sick man to comfort the healthy vixen. But she threw that thought away and dug deeper. For ten minutes she held onto him, as if, at any second, he would disappear.

He gently lifted her furry chin with his thumb and forefinger and brought it up to his. "How about we go get some grub?" He said with a twinkle in his eye.

Jade to burnished gold.

She couldn't help it she brought her muzzle to his lips and kissed him. Their mismatched mouths having no problem with it. Eventually she pulled away reluctantly, breathless. He was smiling broadly. "Feel better?" He asked amused.

"Much." She said with a grin.

"Excellent, Now! Let's go get some food." He exclaimed jovially. She wrapped an arm around his broad shoulders and scooted up to his side and snuggled into it as they walked. He moved his hand around her waist and kept her close.

She thought of the kiss, it was amazing! She felt jolts of electricity when their lips had met. Her fuzzy lips still tingled. She looked up to the humans face as they walked. He was focused on the path in front of them, but he was still smiling faintly. She noticed that he had distracted her from his plight. And in some way she was thankful. His strength supported her.

That was unexpected.

He had brought her face up to cheer her up. And then she had kissed him. It was truly something else, he had never really had any female contact in that way. He was to busy fighting to truly get a chance. But back there had shown him what he was missing out on.

As they walked down the hallway he thought about her. She was certainly beautiful, in an exotic way. She was warm and fuzzy, and if felt great whenever she hugged him. She was caring kind and thoughtful. In other words, the perfect girl for him. Who cared if she was covered in fur, it just made her that more snugable. That...was not a real word, but who gave a damn!

He was a little sad that he would probably not get a chance to expand upon the budding relationship between them. If this continued he would not last much longer. But by god he would make the best of it!

Soon they arrived at the kitchenette and walked in, arm in arm. They went to the table and she had him sit down. Then she walked of with a little sway in her steps, much to his bemusement. She really was great.

Miyu, Fay, and Lupa watched the prancing vixen as she headed for the cabinet and pulled out a couple of bowls. They saw her walk in with Alexander, hugging each other. Miyu was the first one to ask as soon as Krystal neared the pot. "What happened?"

Krystal checked for Penelope, she had beelined for Alex and was already happily talking with him animatedly. She looked back to Miyu and said excitedly, "we kissed!"

"No!" Fay said in surprise.

"Yes, it was absolutely wonderful!" Krystal had a dreamy look on her face.

"So he kissed you?" Lupa asked.

"Well...uh I kinda kissed him first." She said sheepishly.

"So you made the first move." Miyu confirmed.

"Yeah."

"What sparked it?"

Krystal frowned sadly. "He is getting worse."

"How so?" Fay asked worriedly.

"When I went to his room I hear a most horrible coughing sound, so I entered, and he was sweating terribly and there was a pool of blood in his lap."

Miyu Fay and Lupa gasped.

"What was wrong?" Lupa, the doctor, asked.

"He had a terrible coughing fit that left him considerably weakened."

"That doesn't sound good." Miyu muttered.

"Indeed it is not, he has a problem with his lungs. I might be able to stop it, or at least, slow it down." Lupa said hopefully.

"Let's wish you can." Krystal said and filled up the bowls with the Paclac. She walked back over to the table. They saw that Alex had gotten a hold of Penelope and was having a playfight in the chair. She was tickling him and he chuckling. Suddenly he had a small fit of coughing and brought a napkin to his mouth. After a while he removed it when Penelope was preoccupied with the arrival of the food.

It was stained red.

He looked at it and swiftly pocketed the evidence in hopes that no one else had seen. But they had, and it worried them.

After the tickle war and the hidden napkin Alex watched Krystal saunter over with two steaming bowls of...purple noodles covering in blues sauce. When she set one down in front of him he looked at her suspiciously.

"What...is this?"

"Paclac." She said simply.

"Pac...lac?"

"Yes."

He took a fork off the table and jabbed it, it jiggled. "Paclac?"

"Yes!" She shouted running out of patients.

"...huh." He slowly took a fork full and ate it. She looked at him expectantly. "Hmmm..." He stretched it until she couldn't take it anymore.

"So!"

Alex looked at her frazzled muzzle. "It's...outstanding." He said finally.

She let out an explosive breath. "You can be terrible sometimes.

"I know." He grinned.

After that Krystal set up the other places for everyone else. In no time at all everyone arrived. Krystal sat next to Alex who was beside Penelope.

The table was rectangular and long enough to seat the whole team. Falco, Fox, Slippy, and Miyu sat on one side, all the others on the opposite.

Without much ceremony they began the meal, with much gusto. "Damn Krystal, this is pretty good!" Falco exclaimed mid bite. They all hummed in agreement, except for Slippy, who was to busy inhaling it to contribute.

Falco then turned to Alexander. "So you good now?"

"Yeah, I've never been better!" He said with a smile. Of course, he was lying.

"Good to hear."

They all talked and laughed amongst themselves for the whole meal. Alex was thankful that he didn't have another fit, that would have killed the mood. In an effort to show everyone, even Krystal, that he was fine, he spun tales of his time as a squadron leader. He didn't really talk about any battles, he mostly talked about his friends and certain hijinks they had done.

They sat there talking for a long time. In fact he didn't even know what time it was. And he was surprised to learn that it was late. Just as things were going well he could feel the onset of another attack. He stood up abruptly.

"Sorry to cut the fun short, but I'm still a little tired." He explained to the curious team. He began to cough and covered his mouth with the napkin from his pocket, forgetting that it had already been stained by blood. "I will see you all in the morning." He said returning the napkin to his pocket, unaware that they had seen the blood. He quickly left the room. The women gazing at the door worriedly.

"Was that..." Peppy asked.

"Yes." Krystal said cutting him off. "Lupa why don't you get Penelope to bed, it's late."

Lupa nodded grimly and picked up the reluctant canine pup. "I don't want to go to bed!" She said tiredly, but falling asleep soon after.

"Okay, what's going on?" Fox demanded, worried for his teammate.

Alexander had barely made it to his room before he was wracked with sickening coughs and shutters. He stumbled around until he found his bed. It was the worst attack yet. He was seizing and his diaphragm locked up as he coughed almost nonstop. He was weakened and could barely stop himself from falling of the bed.

He laid in the dark of his room and struggled to breath. After awhile he felt the warm comforting furry arms of Krystal as she got in the bed and wrapped him completely in an embrace. Tail as a blanket and head on his shoulders. She did her best to sooth him and whispered to him. "It's going to be okay." Over and over again until he stopped shaking and coughing.

It was a long night.


	12. Chapter 12

Shattered

Chapter XII

Alex was groggy, and he couldn't open his eyes. He must have fallen asleep. For some reason he felt pleasantly warm. His memory was still disjointed from the night before. He was covered up in some kind of fuzzy blanket. He gave it an experimental squeeze and was rewarded with a strange sound that reminded him of purring. Confused he forced his eyes open and looked at the blanket.

It wasn't a blanket.

Krystal was entrapping him. Her arms were clutching his chest and her legs had wrapped around his, and her long fluffy tail had blanketed the both of them. She was still asleep, but was making that adorable sound. Her face was mesmerizing. The striking blue fur and tribal markings were truly something beautiful to behold. This was by far the best thing he had ever woken up to. He did not want it to end, so he let himself go back to sleep. For the first time in a long time it was relaxing and restful.

Krystal woke up feeling like a million credits, despite the turbulent night. She noticed that she was still holding on to Alex. That was fine with her. Still, her stomach growled its displeasure, signifying her hunger. So, reluctantly, she untangled herself from her human, which promptly shook him from his slumber. "Krys?"

"Hey Alex."

"What were you doing in here?"

"You know, just taking care of my favorite human!" She exclaimed cheerily.

He laughed a hardy laugh, thankful that it wasn't ruined by a fit. "I'm the only human."

"Details, details." She shrugged off.

He laughed some more. "Well in any case, thanks for being here." He said happily.

"I'll always be there for you." She said, green eyes sparkling.

He got of the bed and swept her into a hug. "And I'll be there for you." He whispered into her ear, tickling the fur and making her shiver. He pulled away and looked into her eyes. "Now! Lest get some grub, I feel especially hungry today."

"How coincidental! So do I!"

"Well then what are we waiting for?" He had changed out of the tank top and back into his outfit, (minus the jacket) he had to see about getting new clothes.

Krystal was wearing a purple skirt and shirt combo with sandals, In his opinion she looked great. Those thoughts aside, they left his room and headed down to the kitchenette for breakfast. When they got there they saw a half asleep avian and an orange vulpine at the table. Falco was drinking something that smelled allot like coffee and Fox's head was buried in his cereal.

"This place looks so lively!" Alex said jokingly. Falco just looked up and grunted. Fox was still knocked out. "Now this just won't do, will it Krystal?"

"Oh not at all!" She exclaimed pseudo haughtily.

"I guess we will just have to fix it!" Alex said with a dangerous gleam in his eye. He practically flew to the industrial sized fridge, with Krystal on his heels laughing at his antics. He flung the metal door open and took a quick inventory. "Mmmm...I know! How about some good old fashioned eggs and bacon, with...pancakes?" Krystal's stomach growled in agreement causing her to blush profusely. "It appears we are in agreement." He felt great today, maybe the sickness has abated.

He grabbed a whole box of eggs and what appeared to be bacon. On his way out he snatched some pancake mix. What was most surprising about living with anthropomorphic animals was the fact they had the exact same food products. "Hey Falco, where do you guys he eggs?"

Falco looked a him "chickens."

"But...I...you...never mind." He said somewhat deflated. "Anyways! Let's get cooking." He went to the stove, it was much more complicated then he had seen before. "Why do they make these things so damn confusing, I mean seriously, you don't need this many freaking buttons!" Krystal just giggled and watched, not helping. It took him a good ten minutes to figure the wretched thing out. But by then he was cooking up a storm. Krystal watched him, slack jawed, as he expertly prepared scrambled eggs, while frying the bacon. The smell had drifted past Falco and Fox. The bird looked more awake, and fox had jolted out of his cereal and was snuffling in the direction of the food.

"Wasa szat." He said incoherently, milk dripping off his muzzle. For one crazy second Alex had a flashback to when Krystal was crying over him. He swiftly buried that notion.

"Real breakfast." He boasted to the confused vulpine.

As he returned his focus to the feast he was preparing the other members of starfox began to walk in. First was Slippy who was pointedly trying to discover where the magnificent aroma was originating from. Then came Peppy who was smiling and mumbling something about 'real food for once.' Moments later Miyu and Fay waltzed in and halted when they saw who was cooking. Which caused Penelope and Lupa to crash into them. Once they were sorted out they headed over to the chef.

"You...can cook?" Miyu said unbelievingly.

"Yep taught by the best, my mother." He grinned sadly.

Penelope pushed through everyone and tackled the grinning human. "Big brother made food!" He almost collided with the flaming stove.

"Whoa there little one! Careful!" He scooped her up and held her cooking with one hand now. "And yes I did, but its not done yet."

"Finally a guy that can cook." Fay said happily.

"Yeah, I used to cook for my mom and little sister before a shipped out. I got to be pretty good at it." He said modestly.

"Pretty good?" Lupa scoffed, " it smells absolutely wonderful!"

"I would hope so, because your the ones eating it." He chuckled.

They all took note of his good mood and Krystal commented on it. "Your acting happy today."

He set down the spatula after flipping the pancakes and brought Krystal into a hug with his now free hand and kissed her on her fuzzy cheek. "Why wouldn't I? The necros are gone, I'm still alive, and I have you guys!" He said jovially. She blushed under his lavish affection.

Then he set down Penelope and shushed them all out. "Now go sit, I need room." With them out of the picture he could return his focus to cooking, he was humming to himself and smiling.

"What's up with him?" Fox said as he watched the human cook.

"I don't know, he was like that since he woke up." Krystal half muttered as she watched.

"Since he woke up, you were with him?" Falco asked sneakily.

"Yeah well...uh I went to check up on him last nigh and he was...not doing well." She said cryptically, Penelope was at the table.

"I see." Falco said slowly.

"Yet this morning he woke up in a fantastic mood, it was very nice."

Fay mumbled enviously. "Lucky you."

"Yes well its good to see him so well, I might not need to do the checkup." Lupa said hopefully.

"I can only hope as well." Fox replied.

"Alright guys, breakfast is served!" Alex exclaimed as he set down three massive platters. One was full of pancakes, another a mountain of eggs, and the last a mound of bacon.

They dug in with gusto. Mouth full of food, Falco ordained "you are now the ships chef."

"Oh I don't think I'm that good."

"Sure you are!" Slippy said already on his third plate.

"Well I will only accept the position of Krystal takes up the mantle of sous chef."

"I would be delighted." She said.

"Yay! Big brother makes the best food!" Penelope added.

"Why aren't you eating son?" Peppy asked concernedly.

Indeed he wasn't, he was just watching them from the side. "I don't want to be a burden."

"What no way! You sit down this instant, right here!" Fay ordered and made him sit next to her and Krystal.

"If you insist." Falco handed him a plate and Miyu filled it up. Lupa gave him utensils and Penelope tossed him a napkin. He looked at all of them, they may not be human, but they were his family.

Fay nudged him with her shoulder and smiled happily, canines showing. "Isn't this better?"

He returned it, "much."

Breakfast was finished in a few hours, most of that time was spent talking. Once it was over they broke up into their usual groups and wandered off to do their usual morning routines. He stopped Slippy outside the dining area.

"Hey Slip."

"Yeah Alex?"

"Do you think I could use the mechanics facilities? I need to repair my armor, and maybe add some things to it."

"Of course you can! Follow me, I was just heading their myself."

"Alright give me a second." With Slippy waiting he went to talk to Krystal. He found her taking with Fay.

"How would I do that?" He heard her ask.

"Just go up to him and ask, he'll understand." Krystal answered.

"I don't know."

"I'll help."

He interrupted them. "Hey Krys!" He kissed her on the cheek again.

"Hey Alex." She smiled mirthfully.

"Just wanted to let you know I was going to be at the shop for a spell, working on my suit." Fay was looking at him oddly but he paid it no mind.

"Alright, I might stop by."

"That would brighten my day!" He said sincerely. "See you soon."

With that taken care of he rejoined Slippy after making a brief stop at his room and picking up his modules. When he saw the mechanics room his jaw dropped. It was a engineers wet dream.

It was full of tools and supplies, everything he would need to fix his suit and add some much needed upgrades. "Color me impressed Slip."

"Really, you like it?"

"Like it, I love it! It has got to be, hands down, the best looking shop I've ever seen."

"How do you know so much?"

"Well, my friend Santiago was a engineer before the war and he taught me all he knew about his trade. So I'm actually pretty knowledgeable about this."

Slippy was ecstatic, at last someone who could understand him, someone he could talk to about his passion. "Great!"

"How about you give me a hand, huh Slip?" He asked.

"It would be my pleasure."

They examined his suit once he recovered it from his device. It was in bad shape. Most of the plating was ripped off and it was chock full of holes. The mechanism for the retractable, tractable helmet was damaged and the interface tool was cracked. "Those necromorphs really did a number on it huh?" Slippy commented.

"Yeah, I think in the end it was worser off then me."

"Well don't fret, I have all the things we could need to fix it." Slippy assured. It took them three hours to repair the suit to its former glory, that was without breaks or distractions. They were so absorbed in their work they didn't notice Krystal and Fay enter.

They watched the two work, of more exactly Alex. The room was fairly hot with all the machine running so he had taken off his shirt and was only covered on the lower half. They watched as he tried to bend a piece of metal into shape with his bare hands. His muscles were rippling with the effort of his exertion. As an amazing show as that was they frowned sadly as they gazed at his chest. After his near fatal battle on Aquas he sported a new grisly assortment of scars, with a massive one on his abdomen. Even with modern medical science they couldn't competing erase such grievous wounds. They would forever mark him, a testament to his dance with death.

He finished conforming the metal and looked up to spot the two women. "Hi!" He greeted, golden eyes locked onto theirs. "What brings two beautiful women to this gritty and dirty operation."

Fay's brown and white fur turned a dark shade of pink at the compliment and Krystal just smiled warmly. "Just checking in on you." She replied.

"Well then you missed out on the fun stuff, it's all over now, it's back to its old self." He gestured to his armor. It looked brand spanking new. It's black and red plating had a glossy coat and the tears were mended. "I'll install the upgrades later."

"Well that's good, Fay and I have something to ask you since your no longer busy." Krystal said.

"All righty, let me just clean up and I'll meet you outside." Alex answered. They exited and he helped Slippy clean up. Once he was done he cleaned himself up and put his shirt back on. Then he left the shop and saw the two women waiting for him. "So what did you need me for?"

"Fay had a question to ask you." Krystal explained.

"Alright what was it?"

"Well first I had one."

"Shoot."

"We are in a relationship right?" She asked surprising him.

"I certainly hope so." Alex answered.

"Oh we are, it's just her question relates to that."

Alex was now nervous, he felt as if he had just stepped onto uneven ground. "How?"

Krystal motioned for Fay to take over. And she did, terribly. "Well...uh...I was...wondering...if...you...uh." She was fumbling trying to find out how to ask for what she wanted.

Krystal decided to help her. "She wants to be your girlfriend to."

His mind broke.

"Whaaaaaaaaaaa..."


	13. Chapter 13

AN:Hope you guys have all been enjoying the story so far. Just wanted to leave a little note to say that I would love to get some reviews. I wanna know what you guys think so far. So with that out of the way, enjoy!

Shattered

Chapter XIII

Krystal and Fay looked at him expectantly for an answer. Honestly he was dumbfounded. "I don't know what to say."

"It's simple, do you like her?" Krystal said.

"Yeah, but I'm already with you." He answered back awkwardly.

"So?"

"Back in my reality we only ever had one significant other." He explained.

"Well here it's not unheard of for their to be multiple people in a relationship."

"I don't know,'it doesn't seem right." Alex said reluctantly.

Krystal looked upset. "Is it so wrong for more then one person to like each other?"

"No bu-"

"No buts, its a simple choice, do you like her?"

"Yeah."

"Well, what's the problem then."

"What about you?" He attempted one last objection meekly.

"I helped her get the courage to ask, and here you are being very rude." Krystal scolded, and demolished his last argument.

He sighed, why was he even arguing? Most guys would love for this to happen. He looked to Fay who had a worried look on her muzzle. "So...you like me?"

She nodded enthusiastically, long brown ears flopping cutely. He guessed that the most she could do was that, clearly gathering the courage to do this was her limit.

"Okay then, that's good cause I like you too." She slammed into him happily, tail wagging ferociously. "Although I don't know what I did to deserve this wonderful attention." He added out of breath.

"Silly, it's who you are." Fay finally said.

"Who am I?" He asked her curiously.

"A funny, kind, strong, dependable, and brave man." Fay replied vigorously.

"Wow, I sound awesome." He chuckled, eliciting a giggle from the both of them.

Seconds later Fox came from a side hallway and was not paying attention. He collided with Alex sending the both of them to the floor spluttering. They immediately leaped up and brushed themselves off dignifiedly. Acting as if that had not just happened, ignoring the uncontrollable giggles coming from the two girls.

"Sup Fox." Alex said nonchalantly not looking in the direction of the vulpine.

"You know, just walking around." Fox replied equally nonchalant and looking straight ahead.

"Cool, cool." Alex said smoothly.

"What a bunch of bozos." Krystal whispered loudly to Fay.

"So where are you off to in such a huff." Alex asked steering the topic away from their collision.

"Actually I was looking for you. I wanted to see if you would like to go to the mall." Fox offered.

"The mall." Alex deadpanned.

"Yeah, considering our big payout from Pepper, I thought we could go get some stuff, and set up an account for you."

"Huh...thats actually a good idea." Alex said in surprise.

"I take it that means you want to go?"

"Yeah sure."

Krystal and Fay squealed excitedly. "The mall!" Alex had a very bad feeling about this.

An hour later Alex and the rest of Starfox were standing outside a massive mall. It was over ten stories tall, and went underground. "Damn." Alex muttered. "That is a big ass mall."

"Pssh they have a bigger one on Katina." Falco scoffed.

They walked into the ridiculously huge lobby. It was full of cornerians going through their daily routines. Their were dozens of species. Unfortunately, as soon as they entered all eyes fell on them. Not only was the famous Starfox team there, but they had the alien from the news with them. Thankfully no one stopped to talk to them, all they did was stare and occasionally take a picture.

Alex was once more reminded of the cafeteria on Aquas right before he left to destroy the marker. All those eyes, even more then last time. And they all were centered on him. It was unsettling.

His attention was drawn away from the all the prying eyes when he noticed the decorations all over the inside of the mall. No way...they celebrated Christmas. Or at least something that was extremely similar to Christmas. Either way if these decorations held any truth to them, he would buy something for every member of the team. It would be a great way to pay them back for all that they had done.

"What's with the decor?" He asked Krystal.

"It's for the end of the year holiday, Donum Dans." She answered and gave him a quick hug.

"What is it for?"

"It's when you give gifts to all your friends and family to show your appreciation."

So it wasn't Christmas but it was close enough. After his musing, he came back to reality and followed his friends, they did their best to ignore the stares and go about their business. First thing they did was go to the bank to set up the account for Alex. With help from a way too energetic owl they finished in good time. After that Slippy and Peppy wandered off, the girls dragged a reluctant Miyu to the women's clothing store, Lupa was manipulated by Penelope to go to the candy store, which left Fox, Falco, and Alex who went to the gun shop.

Alex didn't want anything as he was happy with his current arsenal, but he did buy some equipment for the fabrication of rounds and components that he could repurpose to keep his blade in top shape. (This was after several minutes calming down the ecstatic cashier). As he was purchasing the things and placing the order for it to be moved to The Great Fox, he saw Falco eyeing an exotic handgun. He looked depressed. Alex walked over to him. "What's the problem?"

"I can't afford it."

Alex took a closer look, it was called the Golden Falcon, and cost ten thousand credits. He had to admit, it was a beautiful weapon. It's muzzle was a screeching falcon's head and was enameled with feather like etchings. Obviously something that Falco would love.

"Yeah man sometimes you can't get want you want." Alex said sadly.

Falco sighed and walked away. After that he went to go look for Fox, who he found in the armor section of the store. He was looking at a light body suit. The sign in front boasted of its defensive capabilities and comfort. It was form fitting and black. "Watcha looking at Fox."

"Just something that's caught my eye for the last two years."

"Why don't you get it?"

"I could, but I would rather save the money." Fox answered.

"Huh."

"Well I got what I needed." Fox said, he raised up a paw to show the bag he was holding with a few supplies in it, probably for maintaining his blaster. "I'll see you outside." Fox left with Falco.

Alex walked over to the panda clerk. "Hey I'd like to buy a few more things.

With his plans in motion he left the store and found Fox and Falco leaning on a railing and watching the crowds. He moved to join them. They stood there silently for awhile before continuing their quest for things.

"Where is everyone?" He asked.

"I don't know, wanna go find them?" Falco suggested.

"Sure." Fox agreed.

The first member of the group they found was Peppy, he was at an old fashioned bookstore, the kind that still sold paper ones. A big reader himself, Alex bought some books, he was interested in seeing what they would be like. While there he had a short conversation with the old hare. "Someone else who enjoys books." Peppy said jokingly when he saw Alex reading a back of one of the novels.

"Yeah I know, we're a dying breed." Alex fired back with a small laugh.

"Indeed, indeed." Peppy said chuckling.

"Ha ha." Falco said "yes that's interesting and all, but we should be finding the others." Fox also did not look so interested in the bookstore.

"Alrighty then spoilsport." Alex grumbled. Leaving the Store with his new purchases. (He had decided to buy a few books for Peppy when he was distracted.) He followed them for a few minutes, he still was bothered by all the staring, he did his best to get used to it. It was going to be a challenge.

When they located Slippy they had to drag him away from the hardware store before he could have a fit. It took all of them to pull him out. "Noooooo!" The amphibian shrieked. "I want it!" He was trying to grab a ridiculously expensive all in one type cabinet. Designed for storing and working on projects.

The toad was mollified when Fox brought him to the side and calmed him down. Alex ducked in real quick and bought the overpriced thing and asked for it to be delivered to the ship. Just as he got back Sliopy sat on a bench looking depressed. Alex saw him as being a little childish, but let it go as Slippy was a little young.

With a slight amount of hesitation the group of guys went to track down the women. They all feared that the girls would delay their departure by several hours.

They found Krystal, Miyu, and Fay at a women's clothing store, the name was Gloria's or something like that. Alex didn't really care. They stood outside.

"Who's going in." Fox said seriously.

"No way in hell man! You can't make me!" Falco flipped out backing away slowly. "I won't let what happened last time haunt me again!"

"Okay Falco calm down, I'm sure they forgot what happened with the dressing room." Fox placated.

"I haven't!"

"How about you?" Fox asked as he looked at Peppy.

"I doubt such an old hare as myself would be of any use." Peppy muttered, slowly backing up to where Falco was.

"Slippy?" Fox sounded desperate.

The toad was nowhere to be seen. They swore they could see a fair outline of the amphibian's from where he was last standing.

"Guys?"

Fox was on the edge of panic, his fur was bristling and his eyes looked crazed. Alex didn't understand what the big deal, was so he offered to go.

"What! You would willingly go in there?" Fox exclaimed in disbelief.

"Sure." He shrugged "what's the worst that could happen?"

"Nothing of course!" Fox said suspiciously and abruptly. "Well what are you waiting for?" Fox started to push him into the store, Alex looked back one last time and saw the piteous expressions on the guys faces, almost overwhelmed by the look of relief, suddenly this didn't feel like such a good idea.

"Uh Fox ma-"

"Uh uh uh, you volunteered." Fox cut him off. Now he was really worried. Before he could object Fox flung him into the store. He hit the ground with a painful thud. Alex got up and took a look around. Their was...allot of furry women. And they all were staring at the human that had just been dumped into their midsts.

"Crap."

Meanwhile the girls were browsing the selection of female apparel. Miyu was reluctantly tagging along. Sure she loves to have nice clothes, she just loathed the time it took for her friends to pick what they wanted.

"Are you two done yet?" She muttered angrily, for the fiftieth time

"Just a little longer." Krystal replied distractedly, she was holding up a yellow skirt and trying to figure out if she liked it.

"You said that an hour ago!" Miyu groaned, tail lashing in annoyance.

"Things like this take time." Fay sagely refuted. She was comparing a blue and red dress.

Miyu sighed in defeat and collapsed on the waiting bench. She glanced to its other occupant. The male black bear was watching his wife go through a rack of pants. His look mirrored Miyu's, despair and suffering.

Miyu hear a commotion at the front of the store. She couldn't see it from all the way in the back, so out of boredom she investigated. At the front she was confronted with a odd sight. Alex was here, and was swarmed by all the women nearby. His expression was one of absolute confusion. He was being bombarded by a wave of questions. He locked eyes with Miyu and conveyed a heart felt plea for aid in that one second of contact. She was happy to help.

"HEY!" She shouted throttling the voices of the curious women. They all turned to the perpetrator. "Can't you see that you are smothering the poor human?" She was sure that they were too surprised to see the human from the vids to recognize what they were doing. But when they did they ashamedly backed off a little giving him some breathing room. He looked incredibly relieved and thankful.

"Sorry." One of the women, a tiger, said sadly with her head down. Soon they all were apologizing profusely.

He spoke. "It's alright, I can't say that it was completely unpleasant." The women laughed. He was startled that he was handling all this well. Still, he would get Fox back for this. "Maybe I can answer all of your questions another time. For now I have to find some of my friends." The group of females dispersed and Alex was left with Miyu. "Thanks for the help back their, I swear I was a goner!" He said jokingly.

Miyu giggled and snorted. She gasped and covered her muzzle, fur flushing. "Sorry."

"For what?" Alex wondered.

"For the snort, I know it's not pretty." Miyu said shamefacedly.

"Are you kidding, that was adorable!" Alex exclaimed,

Miyu was mystified, people had always thought that her laugh was weird. "Really?"

"Yes, I for one liked it, you should laugh more." He answered.

Miyu blushed even more and went silent, pondering on what he said. She led him back to Krystal and Fay who embraced him as soon as they spied him approaching. "Alex!" They had both squeaked.

"Hey girls." He said and picked them up and hugged them tightly. Miyu watched from the sidelines with an odd feeling in her chest. She felt a little...hollow. She brushed it off and looked at her friends happily.

"Why are you here?" Krystal asked as she held onto him.

"Fox and the others sent me to check on you guys." They faintly heard him mumble something about "vengeance" but he stopped before they could ask. "So, how's it going?"

"We're almost done." Fay answered, Miyu scoffed.

"Why don't you help us?" Krystal suddenly asked as the idea formed in her mind.

Alex's face fell and he looked to Miyu once more for help, she looked at him and smirked. "I'm sure he would love to." The look of betrayal on his face was comical.

"Et tu Brutus?" He asked sadly.

Miyu just laughed evilly as she stood by and let Krystal and Fay drag him off to help them pick clothes.

"Do you think he's dead?" Slippy asked. They had been sitting outside the store for over an hour. No word had come from the sacrifice they had made.

"I'm sure he's fine." Falco answered with little confidence.

"He's fine." Fox agreed.

"We should pray for him." Peppy suggested.

Before they could Alex emerged from the dreaded store. His face was battle hardened and grim. He was holding onto an innumerable amount of bags. The women chatted happily as they walked out with the poor human in tow. "Hey Fox!" Krystal greeted and hugged him.

"Took you long enough." He grumbled back.

"You can't rush perfection." She retorted sticking her tongue out.

Alex interrupted by dumping the pile of bags in Fox's and Falco's laps. "What's this for?" Falco demanded, groaning in pain as the heavy bags had landed on a...sensitive area.

"Vengeance." Alex replied simply before walking over to Slippy and Peppy. Falco and Fox grunted with exertion as they tried to carry the bags, it appeared that the human was stronger then they thought. Between the two of them they could barely lift and move the bags.

Alex watched in satisfaction as the two tried to keep up with the group. "We need to find Lupa and Penelope." He said to his friends.

"I know where they are!" Slippy pipped up helpfully.

"How?"

"I saw them when I was ru-walking away earlier in front of the store." He tried to play it off, but it was futile, Alex knew what he meant.

"I see." He said darkly. 'Soon' he thought to himself. 'Soon Slippy will get his!'

"Y-y-yeah their this way." Slip guided them to a place that resembled a food court. It was a huge expanse of small shops with vendors selling a wide variety of food and drink. The rest of it was covered in a swath of tables and chairs, most being occupied by families and what appeared to be teenagers (it was hard to tell from the distance). Alex spied Lupa vainly trying to control a sugar infused Penelope, the little wolf cub was quivering with uncontainable energy. It seemed that taking her to a candy shop was a bad idea.

Seeing the canine's plight he moved to assist her leaving the others in the dust. As he navigated the maze of chairs and tables he couldn't help but feel all the eyes watching. He understood why they did that, but he really wished that they would stop. Some people probably would have enjoyed all the attention. Not Alex, he was perfectly fine with being a little known figure in the crowd. Here that wouldn't happen. He was too different from them to every truly go unnoticed, realizing that it would be like this for the rest of his life, he tried his best to ignore it.

"Need a little help?" He asked the exhausted looking canine.

Lupa looked to him, her muzzle shifted into a look that reminded him of a drowning man spying out a lifeguard. "Yes please!" She begged.

Chuckling heartily Alex turned to address Penelope. "Hey little one."

Her mouth was currently stuffed with some sort of sweets. "Awex!" She shouted, her voice muffled by the candies lodged in her muzzle. She flew of her chair and hugged him with insane strength.

"Hi." He groaned out.

"Wesh hash uo been?" She inquired as he gently removed his excess baggage (Penelope).

"Just getting a few things." He explained. He leaned down conspiratorially "hey, you know, Slippy has something for you."

"Really?" Her ears perked up and her poofy ebony tail wagged excitedly.

"Yeah, why don't you go ask him?"

"Okay!" Penelope shouted and flew off like a rocket at the approaching group. Slippy was curious as to why Penelope was speeding toward them. When he looked at Alex and saw his viscous grin, his face lit up in realization and terror. Just as he turned to run he was intercepted by a black fuzzy bullet. "YAY PRESENT!"

Smirking Evilly he turned back to Lupa. "Problem solved." Lupa was laughing uproarsly and was close to tears, in fact not only was the rest of Starfox laughing along, the whole court was reverberating with laughs. "Why don't you go to them." Alex suggested to the still laughing woman. "If they ask tell them I went off to get something."

Lupa nodded still smiling and quickly rejoined the group. As Alex walked away he could see the flustered and confused toad as he tried to explain to the energetic ball of fur that he didn't have a present. Now satisfied that his vengeance was complete he went of to buy the last few gifts, for the women and Penelope.

He walked out of the store with his new gifts in a securely wrapped bag. These last ones had almost drained his current balance. But it would be worth every credit to see the women smile. He headed back to the food court to see them all sitting at a table and eating food that looked allot like hamburgers and hotdogs.

"Hey guys." He greeted taking a seat next to Krystal and Fay.

"Sup Alex." Falco said while handing him a burger lookalike.

He eyed it for a few seconds before shrugging and taking a bite. It wasn't half bad. "This is pretty good."

"Yeah I thought you might like a burger." Falco said smugly.

'So, some foods had the same name here, curiouser and curiouser.' He mused to himself. They spent a short time eating and talking. Penelope crashed and fell asleep in the middle of eating. Her muzzle fell onto her plate of salad, smearing it with dressing and bits o lettuce. Alex softly lifted her head and cleaned her with a napkin. He was smiling as he did it. It really was adorable.

"I guess we should call it a day."

"Yeah I'm getting kinda tired." Falco replied stretching and yawning.

"I'll hold Penelope." Alex said and picked up the conked

out pup. "You guys can get the bags." He had stored the gifts he had brought with him on his device so thankfully no one would discover them.

Slippy, Falco, and Fox groaned and picked up all the bags, their were...quite a few. Peppy lucked out, he said his age prevented him from heavy lifting. The women didn't have anything so they walked ahead of the men. Alex walked with them and talked. As they went back to The Great Fox, Alex smiled. 'Today was a good day."


	14. Chapter 14

Shattered

Chapter XIV

They got back to the ship half an hour before dark. As the team walked up the ramp, Alex hung back and waited for the shipment of items he purchased. After a few minutes a truck drove up, and out stepped a few burly wolves and a bear. The bear walked up to Alex uninterested in the fact he was an alien. "We got your order sir." He grumbled, the wolves were unloading the items and placing them down in front of the closed hanger door.

"Thank you." Alex said before fishing around in his pocket for some credits that he had converted into chips. He held out the bundle of currency, which the bear took hesitantly.

"You don't have to pay us again, the company already did."

"Nonsense, a working man should always be paid for his labour." Alex responded kindly.

The bear looked down and his eyes bulged out. "I think you miscounted sir." There was several thousand credits in his paws.

"I didn't." Alex replied simply.

"I-I can't take this." The bear said, "it's too much."

"Sure you can, just make sure to give equal share to your men." Alex said with a friendly smile.

"T-thank you sir!" The bear exclaimed.

"It is I who should thank you." He watched the bear walk over to his fellows and show off their surprise tip. The wolves muzzles went from disbelief to shock as they looked into the cupped paws of their boss. Alex walked away whistling contentedly at a kindness done. He always enjoyed making other people happy. Now came the hard part. He picked up the cabinet with a groan and hauled it into the ship.

It took him twenty minutes to carry in all the gifts. But when he was done he felt satisfied. He truly hoped they would enjoy his gifts. Not wanting anyone to find them prematurely he stashed the gifts in a seemingly abandoned storage room. Then he covered them up with some wrapping paper he had shipped also. The cabinet was a hassle, but after a grueling twenty minutes he was done. He dusted off his hands after he placed the last wrapped item. "A job well done." He commented to nobody in particular.

With the presents safely hidden he could now put away the other things he had bought for his own personal use. He finished setting up the last item, a loading station.

"Hiya Alex, watcha doing?" He heard the high pitched voice of Slippy inquire.

"Oh nothing, just taking a gander about the hanger and setting up shop."

"Oh, I just saw you so I thought I would ask." Slippy said walking away.

Since he finished, he decided to follow after Slippy. They walked together until Alex saw his room. He was exhausted from his long day, so he quickly went to the door. "Later Slip." He said goodbye and opened the door. He walked in and stopped. Krystal and Fay were laying in his bed and were talking. "What are you doing here?"

"Waiting for you." Krystal answered.

"Okay, Why?" He asked befuddled.

"So we can sleep." Fay replied.

"Okay...so why?"

"So we can sleep together!" Krystal exclaimed finally. He could see her tail thumping under the blue blanket. "We wanted to spend time with you."

He was too tired to object, and frankly, he liked the idea. "Move over." They both moved so he could lay in the middle. Thankfully the bed was large enough to accommodate all three of them. Krystal snuggled backwards into his chest, so he wrapped his arms around her. She murred happily and shifted until she was satisfied. Her tail was in laying on his leg and moving softly. Alex could feel Fay's furry arms as she hugged him from behind. He felt incredibly comfortable. Idly scratching behind Krystal's ears he slowly drifted off to sleep.

Alex was jolted awake when he felt a furry body land on his chest. He opened his eyes to see an emerald green pair staring back at him less then an inch away, they were surrounded by a field of blue fur. He could feel a wet nose on his.

"Hi."

It was Krystal, she had apparently jumped on him. "What was that for?" He asked painfully.

"It's Donum Dans day!" She replied happily. Her long blue and white tail danced back and forth behind her.

"Really?"

"Yeah, come on, everyone else is waiting!" she said in a rush and tried to pry him out of bed.

"I don't wanna." He fired back stubbornly and dug deeper into the sheets. "I'm still tired."

"Oh, none of that!" She denied and began to push him over the side.

With a yelp he crashed down onto the cold floor. "What the heck!"

Krystal giggled mirthfully. "I suppose you have to get up now."

"Yeah, yeah, you win this time. But beware, one day I'll get you back for this!" He vowed as he got off the floor and staggered into the bathroom.

She smirked and sat on the bed. She loved that man, he was funny, kind, brave, and he understood her. But most importantly, he loved her back. It didn't bother her that she shared him with Fay. She was a good friend.

"What are you smirking for?" She heard Alex grumble. He had gotten dressed in the same outfit he always had, it seemed that he had forgotten to buy clothes for himself at the mall.

"Nothing." She replied innocently.

"Uh...huh." He said slowly.

"How about we go now?"

"Might as well, considering you threw me out of my wonderful bed." He muttered with a playful tone and kissed her on the cheek. This made her smile and give him a quick swipe with her tongue across his.

"Wait for me outside, I have to do something real fast." She went outside and waited. As soon as she left he hurriedly stashed his gifts for her and the other girls in the small closet in the room. He was excited for when he would unveil them. To waylay suspicion he had got a few distraction gifts for the girls so that they would not get upset at the main gift giving, the real gifts for them would be handed out in a private setting. That completed he left to join her outside.

They walked down to the large den. Entering, Alex discovered that, indeed, the others were already there. Fox and Falco sat in chairs by a table and were talking. Fay, Miyu, and Lupa played some sort of board game with Penelope on the floor. Slippy was fiddling with some piece of mechanical junk, and Peppy was sitting in an armchair by a simulated fireplace reading a book.

"Hey guys, I got him!" Krystal announced triumphantly.

"I see the beast has awoken." Falco laughed.

"Very funny." Alex retorted sarcastically as he took a seat next to the avian. Krystal sat beside him. "What's the plan?" As he said that he walked over to Fay and have her a hug, which she returned with bone crushing strength.

"There's no plan, we're just going to have a good day, and exchange some gifts." Fox replied.

"Okay, when do you wanna do that then?" He asked as he recuperated from the hug of death.

"How about after some breakfast?" Falco asked hopefully.

"I guess Krystal and I could whip something up."

"Awesome!" Slippy said suddenly from his place by the door.

"So you only talk when there's food?" Fox teased.

"No...well...maybe...sometimes...whatever!" Slippy exclaimed getting up angrily and throwing his hands in the air.

This made them all laugh. "We're just playing with you." Fox said in-between fits of laughter.

"It's alright Slip, I'll make you something special." Alex said feeling a little bad for the teasing.

"Fine." Slippy huffed and sat back down. With the toad pacified Alex and Krystal left and went to the kitchen to make breakfast.

In the kitchen they talked while making food. "You know", Alex began, " I never thanked you for everything you've done for me."

"What do you mean?" Krystal asked confused as she stirred some pancake batter. She was wearing an apron so as not to get any of the mix on her fur and clothes. To him she was still beautiful in it, if not more so.

"You did so much to help me after my arrival, talking with me and becoming my friend." He explained. "You showed so much kindness to a strange being you never saw before. You cared about me, maybe not as much now, but you did nonetheless. And when I lay dying next to the remnants of that monstrous marker on Aquas and saw you crying, for a man you hardly knew, that's when I fell in love with you." He stopped cooking and looked at her with a great big smile. "I love everything about you, your beautiful blue and white fur, your wondrous melodic voice, your sparkling emerald eyes, and your amazingly compassionate and gentle personality."

She was speechless. "I-I don't know what to say."

"You don't have to say anything. I wanted to tell you, that's all." He said as he turned back to the stove. "I like Fay too, maybe not love, I haven't talked to her too much. But given time, I will." He had his focus back on the food, so he didn't see her watery eyes. Although he did hear her sniffles. Alarmed, he twirled back to face her. "What's wrong?"

She was smiling as big watery drops fell down her muzzle. "Nothing." She replied, her cerulean and white furred body flying into his. He was startled to feel her fuzzy lips press against his greedily. And even more surprised when he felt her tongue try to force its way into his mouth. Alex let her in. Their tongues intertwined like two parts of a whole, each made for the other. His tongue was smaller, her vulpine one coming out on top. They were like this for sometime.

Alex began to smell something other then her perfumed body. "Is something burning?" He asked moving his mouth away from hers.

Krystal pulled away. "The food!"

Indeed the food was turning an unappetizing black. Panicked they struggled to save what they could. When it was all said and done, a quarter of their sustenance was ruined. Luckily there was more then enough left for everyone. "We almost lost breakfast." Alex said as he cleaned up the burnt scraps.

"Yeah but it was worth the risk." Krystal replied as she began to put salvaged parts on the trays of the trolley. With one last kiss, they went back to the den with the food. Their arrival was greeted with great jubilation.

"Food!" Slippy shouted. With the food there, they all went to the table and took their accustomed seats.

"Yep, food." Alex said as he wheeled the cart to its place at the side of the table. "Bon-appetite!" He exclaimed as he dramatically revealed the trolley's contents. He had decided to go a little french that day. Crepes with an assortment of jellies and syrup, some breakfast pastries, pancakes of course, and finally french toast. All their mouths were watering at the sight. "Go ahead and eat." He urged.

Hearing that they all got plates from under the trolley and quickly grabbed their food. Alex watched them all eat with a sense of pride, and a small bit of wariness, their snapping maws were disconcerting. Either way he loved making food. The happiness it brought always brought a smile to his face. It looks like today was going to be another great day.

Feeling a little tight chested he walked into the small washroom jointed with the den, unnoticed. Inside he grabbed some tissue paper and cleared his throat. When he did he could feel a strange burning sensation. He lifted the tissue and was shocked to see blood. It seemed that the sickness was always hanging over him, and when he was at his happiest it came down like a hammer on an empty shell, shattering his perceived moments of bliss. He refused to let that happen. He threw the tissue into the toilet and flushed it down. He watched the crimson sheet of paper as it slowly swirled down into the depths of the ships plumbing.

Krystal was sitting next to Fox eating a plate of Crepes with strawberry jelly. She was having the best time of her life. Alex was all she could think about. She loved him more then he loved her. He was slowly becoming the most important person in her life. Alex was always kind to her, never having a mean thing to say, he thought she was beautiful and never tried to take advantage of her. He made her feel good whenever he was there. Just his presence was comforting.

She took another bite of the crepe and washed it down with some juice. 'Where was he?' She looked all over the room for him, green vulpine eyes scanning until she found her target. She saw him walking out of the washroom with a depressed face. His usually kind mirth-filled eyes looked empty and his expression was devoid of emotion. When he saw her looking at him, he switched it to a smile almost fast enough to make her doubt that she had really seen it.

"Hey there beautiful." He said happily as he took his seat next to her and gave her a kiss on the cheek. Fay was beside him, so he kissed her as well. "Hey Fay."

"Hiya Alex!" Fay said tail wagging behind her chair.

"Looks like everyone is liking the food." He commented upon seeing their focused efforts on making sure that there would be no leftovers.

"Yep, this is some if the best food I've ever had the pleasure of eating." Fay remarked as she dug back into her plate of pancakes.

"That's great." He sat there and watched everyone eat, Slippy was happily munching on the plate of french toast that Alex had made especially for him.

"Aren't you hungry?" Krystal asked concernedly as she noticed that he had not got a plate for himself.

"Not really." He answered, he was starving earlier, but now he didn't feel much like eating. In fact his throat felt incredibly dry, he was parched. So he poured a cup of juice and drank it.

"Are you sure?" Krystal was worried, he wasn't eating and he was starting to sound distant.

"Yes I'm fine." He said kindly.

"Please eat something, for me." She begged.

"Anything for you." He relented and made a small plate of crepes and nibbled on them throughout the rest of the meal.

She sighed in relief and went back to her own food. He was eating something now. She vowed to watch him closely and make sure he was taken care of.

Once the meal was over the guys cleaned up and put the plates and utensils away. With that done they moved the furniture into a semicircle and placed the gifts that they had bought for each other in the middle.

"Who wants to go first?" Fox asked.

"You guys go ahead, I have to grab mine." Alex said as he stood up.

"You bought gifts?" Slippy wondered.

"Yeah, why wouldn't I?"

"I don't know, I just didn't expect it that's all."

It took a long time for Alex to get all the gifts on to the right deck level and to the door of the den, still he did it. He opened the door and brought in the smaller gifts leaving the unreasonable large cabinet for Slippy in the hallway. He saw when he entered that Falco had a new jacket on, a personally designed blue and red one. Fox was sporting a new pair of boots. Peppy had a new pair of glasses. Penelope was surrounded by mounds of clothes. Krystal had a purple blouse in her lap. Miyu was wearing a hat that suspiciously resembled a cowboys. Lupa had a dazzling red dress. And finally Slippy and Fay had a new jumpsuit and pilot-suit respectively.

As they saw Alex with a huge armload of presents Falco whistled. "Someone went a little overboard."

"Nah." Alex said, "I just wanted to show you all my appreciation for what you've done for me since I got here."

"You didn't have to do that." Fox said, "it was our pleasure."

"Yeah, well it'll be my pleasure to give you guys these gifts." He walked around handing out the gifts. When he skipped Slippy, the toad got a sad look.

"Don't worry Slip, yours was too big to carry with the others." Alex placated him. Hearing that the toad's face lit back up.

"Wow you got something for everyone." Fay said as she looked over her small present.

"Yep."

"Who should open it first?" Faloc asked excitedly.

"Why don't you." Alex decided.

Heading that suggestion, the avian shredded the paper on his gift to reveal a Phoenix Arms handgun case. He looked up with a shocked expression. "You didn't!" Alex didn't answer, he only smiled contentedly as he watched Falco reverently unlock the clasps and open the case. With shaking hands he pulled out the Golden Falcon. Falco traced the engraved inlays with a feathered hand and brought his gaze back up to the smiling human. "Thank you, so much."

"Your welcome."

As the avian held his gift and stared at it, Alex asked Fox to open his. In haste the vulpine opened his present to unveil the bodysuit he wanted from the shop. "I-I don't know what to say, this is...I don't know." Fox said, unable to find the words.

"That's alright, your muzzle says it all." Falco and Fox staring at their gifts with wonder, Alex bid the rest of his friends to open theirs. Curios, they quickly complied.

Penelope got a little oven thing for making your own mini cakes and things like that. "Thanks big brother!" She shouted and ran up to him and gave him a hug. He chuckled and ruffled the fur atop her head.

Peppy got some books, he looked up and nodded his appreciation, Alex nodded back.

Miyu got a a bracelet with a feral lynx running on it. She was surprised. "This is nice!"

"Yep, it's made of a rare alloy that never scratches or rusts." Alex replied. "At least that's what the salesperson told me." She, in a surprise action, embraced him briefly.

"Thanks." Was all she said before pulling away.

Fay and Krystal got matching red and purple tail loops. "I thought you two might have liked those."

"Like them? We love them!" They replied in unison and kissed him on both cheeks.

"Great, I was a tiny bit worried honestly." He turned to Lupa who was opening her small box. Inside lay two earrings. They were stylized as a pack of running wolves as one, and a moon as the other. Both were made of sterling silver. "They told me it was a great gift for a wolf girl."

"They were right." Lupa said quietly as she gazed upon them. "Thank you."

"Of course."

"What about me!" Slippy grumbled.

"Calm down Slip. I'll go get it." Alex walked out and came back moments later as he slowly dragged in the big present. "Ta da!"

"Wow." The toad immediately set upon the wrapped gift with frighting zeal. In seconds he had torn all the paper off and was now going crazy. "You got it! The..."

Slippy then went off saying the things name, but it was too complicated for him to follow. So Alex just shook his head as if he understood. "Yeah I did."

After a moment everyone realized something. "We didn't get you anything!" Fox voiced in a sad tone.

"I didn't want anything anyway." Alex shrugged off. "I have all I could want already. Great friends, a good life, wonderful women, and a new purpose. That's all I could ever want."

"still, we should have got you something." Krystal said with pouty lips.

"I'm fine, really!"

"Okay." Falco said still a little unsure

Before their could be more objections Fox's communications bracer beeped. "Fox here."

"I hate to call you today, but we have a situation." The voice of General Pepper responded.

"What's the problem sir?"

"I can't say over the line, I need you to head to headquarters as soon as possible, and bring Alex " Pepper said mysteriously and ended the call

"Strange." Fox muttered. "We better hurry up then. Alright, I'll take Alex, Falco, Peppy, and Slippy. Krystal, Miyu, Fay, and Lupa watch over Penelope. We'll be back."

After cleaning up the mess of wrapping paper, the selected members of Starfox left The Great Fox and took a skycar to Cornerian Military Headquarters. When they arrived they were quickly ushered into Pepper's office. He was sitting behind his desk in his swivel chair, he was waiting for them.

"I have troubling news." The old bloodhound said gravely. He was fiddling with sheaf of papers, as if trying to figure out what to say.

"What's wrong?" Falco asked.

"Sometime last night, a squad of venomian commandos broke into Beltino Industries. They took all research pertaining to the teleporter and kidnapped Beltino himself." The General admitted at last.

"What!" Slippy exclaimed. "They took my father!"

"I'm afraid so Slippy."

"Do we know why?" Fox asked.

"No, but the security team managed to capture one of the infiltrators."

"What are we waiting for, let's go beat the information out of him!" Falco muttered darkly.

"Soon Falco, but first I have a request." Pepper said.

"What is it?" Fox wondered.

"When we make a move on venom to retrieve Beltino, I would like you to take two temporary pilots." Pepper explained.

"Alright who?"

"You have to agree before I tell you." Pepper said surprising them.

"Why?"

"Just do it." Pepper responded.

"Fine, I'll take them in." Fox muttered hurriedly, "now who are they?"

"You'll find out when you go down to the interrogation room." Pepper told him cryptically. "Before you go I need to talk to Alex for a minute."

"Uh okay sir." Alex said hesitantly.

"We'll be outside." Peppy said patting him on the shoulder. They left, leaving Alex and the ages General alone.

"What do you need sir?"

Pepper sighed. "Son, the ape we captured, has been spewing out some strange religious mumbo jumbo. But we did here him say something about markers."

Alex's heart began to beat faster. 'Not again' he thought. "Are you sure?"

"Sadly I can guarantee it."

"Has anything else come up?"

"He has denied any other form of information."

"Do you need him alive?" Alex asked dangerously eyes gleaming with a volatile fire.

Pepper though about it seriously. "...no"

"I will make him talk." Alex growled with a cold certainty.

"Good, and Alex, do what must be done." Pepper said with a resigned sigh.

"I intend to. No matter what happens, don't let Fox of Falco stop me." Alex said as he turned away to leave. Giving Pepper one last look with those flaming golden eyes. His face as hard and uncaring as stone.

Alex walked out of the room, with a blank look on his face. "What's wrong?" Falco asked.

"Everything." Was all he got in response, as the human walked past them and headed straight for the interrogation room.

"...Ok then." Falco said worriedly.

Fox and the others desperately tried to keep up with the taller human, they having to take two steps for his one. "What's with him?" Slippy asked.

"I'm not sure Slip." Fox said as he watched the human walk with a fire in his step. He was on a warpath. Fox communicator beeped. "Fox here."

"This is Pepper, no matter what happens, do not interfere with the interrogation." Pepper ordered first thing and then disconnected with out waiting for a response.

"That is...disconcerting." Peppy muttered.

"What's going through his mind right now?" Slippy wondered aloud as he watched the figure of the human stride down the corridor.

"I don't know buddy, I don't know." Falco replied.

Alex was angry. Rampaging thorough his mind was the desire to get information, using whatever means necessary. The damn markers would not just leave him alone. Now they threaten everything he has grown to love. And he will do anything to stop them. There was no doubt in his mind. That ape will die, but not before telling him what he needed to know.

Alex walked into the main room that housed the cells. Fox was right behind him. The cellblock was huge housing many containment rooms and a single table were sitting down, were his new temporary team members. And when he found out who was to join his team he had only one thing to say. "Shit."

"Well, well, well, if it isn't Fox Mccloud and his band of misfits." The smug tone of notorious space pirate, Wolf O'Donnel mocked from his seat. The grey wolf was wearing a reinforced black combat suit with a bladed pistol on his belt. His boots laid on he table and he picked at his canines with a dagger. "And with the alien from the news in tow, you've really gone up in the world eh fox?"

Fox was too busy staring at his other new crew member, with unease. Sitting next to Wolf was Fara Phoenix, once love interest of his. And now, a very scary fennec vixen. She said nothing as she watched Fox haltingly walk over. They had a falling out at the academy and ever since have had a enmity for each other.

"Crap, we gotta work with this asshole!" Falco grumbled loudly.

Alex moved to the side without saying a word. He emitted a aura of suppressed malevolence.

"Is your alien friend shy?" Wolf asked with pseudo kindness.

"No." Fox growled.

Fara just sat their quietly and watched the two men fight with each other, that is at least, until the human spoke up.

"Fox."

"Yeah, Alex?" The orange vulpine replied turning away from his verbal sparing with his long time rival.

"I'm going to interrogate the prisoner." Alex informed as he moved from his place and walked to the door to the room holding the ape.

"Watch gonna do ruffle him up?" Wolf asked he human with a cruel tone. Alex ignored him, opened the door, and entered. "Interesting, let's see what he does." Wolf mused. The door locked.

Inside Alex stomped up to the ape, he was of an interminable species, with brown fur coloring, he was chained to a metal chair, and when he saw Alex walk up he started to talk condescendingly. "Oh what's this? They bring out their pet alien, the marker-"

Before he could continue Alex grabbed his head and brutally smashed it into the steel table. "SHUT UP!" He roared.

Outside, everyone in the room froze. "...Damn." Wolf said in surprise. But the human wasn't done yet.

"Where did they take the toad!"

The ape was reeling from his meeting with the table, but still defiant "pfft you thi-" WHAM.

Another collision with the metal surface, this time his nose broke Alex pulled his head upward and blood gushed out of the simians nasal cavity. "WHERE?" He demanded.

"I-I don't know!" The simian said fearfully.

"Not good enough." Alex growled and rammed his right fist into the ape's face. The chair flew backwards sending his victim to the floor. Alex pulled it back up to face him. "You will tell me." He said with absolute confidence.

Meanwhile the others in the opposite side of the door had mixed reactions. Wolf looked on approvingly, Fara thoughtful, and the members of Starfox rampant. "What's he doing?" Slippy asked panicky.

"What you won't." Wolf grunted as he watched the interrogation, or perhaps torture, through the one-sided window. "I think I like this guy."

"We can't let him do this!" Slippy shouted to Fox.

"Pepper told us not to interfere." Fox replied solemnly.

Falco and Peppy just watched with sadness, their friend had changed.

Inside the room, Alex had just smashed the ape into the table again. "WHERE DID THEY TAKE HIM?"

"Okay, okay, I'll tell, I'll tell." The ape whined, blood flowing down his head.

"Where?"

"They took him to a research facility on Venom."

"Where is it located?" Alex demanded from his place behind the ape.

"I won't say more, the marker is with me." The ape began to rant insanely. Alex yanked his head back and beat it against the table half a dozen times.

"Oh will it now?" Alex almost whispered causticly. "Will it stop me, prevent me from hurting you? Will it strike me down to save its follower?"

"It wil-"

"WRONG!" Alex threw the chair, with the simian attached, into the wall. He collided with a wet thud. Alex picked him up and set him back up almost gently. "Just tell me where and I'll let you go." He said softly.

"But I can't go against its will." The ape said reluctantly. Alex moved to hit him and the ape finally caved. "Alright! He's in the facility connected to the capital, under the airbase."

"Thank you for your cooperation." Alex said as he put his hands on the ape's neck.

"Your letting me go?" The ape asked hopefully.

"Yes." Alex said, then he twisted his hands roughly and there was a sickening snap, like a soggy branch. The now lifeless body of the ape, who's name remained unknown, slumped in the chair, held up only by the restraints. Alex walked out of the room and into the shocked gazes of his friends. "It's done."


	15. Chapter 15

Shattered

Chapter XV

"Why?" Fox asked, needing an answer. In fact they all needed an answer.

"He had been in contact with a marker, there was only one solution." Alex replied with a sad sigh.

"But why?" Fox asked still not understanding.

"A marker imprints upon everybody that comes in contact with it, over time, the instructions for their creation. He was too far gone."

"What the hell is a marker?" Wolf demanded from his seat.

"Something that should be destroyed." Alex answered.

This was the first time that Fara spoke. "What do we do. now?" She asked Alex.

"Now," he answered with a frown, "I have to do what I thought I never would have to again."

"Being?" She asked, one long ear hanging lopsided of her head.

"To teach others about the necromorphs. Fox, I need you to get everyone down here, I'm going to talk with General Pepper." Alex ordered as he walked to the exit of the room, all eyes were on him. He looked back one last time, not at them, but at the monitor, showing the corpse of the ape he had killed. Then he left without a word.

"What the hell is a necromorph?" Wolf demanded, he was ignored.

Hours later Fox and his team were waiting in a huge briefing room. It was large enough to accommodate their new additions, (making the whole place uncomfortable for poor Fox), and another team that had not arrived yet. Fox was trying his hardest to avoid eye contact with Wolf and Fara.

"So Foxy, where did you find that killer eh?" Wolf asked from his seat across the room. Fara had decided to sit near him again, but it wasn't because they were close, more so that things were a little estranged with the team she had once called friends.

Krystal and the others had arrived half an hour ago, Lupa had left Penelope with a close friend. "Who's he talking about?" Krystal asked fox. Alex had not entered the room yet, as he was still talking with Pepper.

"Don't listen to that prick." Fox told her, giving his rival a death glare.

"Oh you know, that human. Never seen such a brutal interrogation before." Wolf continued to flap his jaw. "That ape never stood a chance."

"Interrogation?" Fay inquired, puzzled.

"Yeah, that hu-"

"Shut up wolf!" Falco ordered form his seat next to Slippy. The toad wasn't doing so well. His father had been kidnapped, and to exasperate that, it seemed that they had not seen the last of the necromorph scourge. Which his father was most likely at the heart of right now.

"Sheesh, alright then." Wolf grunted throwing his paws up defensively. "Don't have to bite by head off."

That's when the entryway to the room opened, and a squad of heavily armored and armed wolves walked in wearing the 48th's patch. They silently took their seats on the opposite side of the room. Making Wolf and Fara move to Fox's side. They weren't told to, but the intimidating presence they exuded was a subliminal warning to step off.

Wolf reluctantly sat next to Fox, and Fara moved to where Falco Slippy and Peppy were. "Uh...hey." She said awkwardly.

"Hello Fara." Peppy said warmly. "It's good to see you again."

"Yeah, long time no see." Falco agreed. Slippy just waved half-heartedly.

It was strange to her. They talked for a few minutes and it felt like she had never even left. As if her fallout with Fox had never happened. It was...nice.

Alex was walking out of Peppers office, he had just finished a very long discussion with the old hound. They had agreed on a course of action. Now he would just have to brief the teams who will participate in the assault. Alex had only one concern. Which he had voiced to Pepper.

"What about Venomian retaliation?"

"War was inevitable, the truce could only last for so long." Pepper replied, he was gazing out of his window and at the cornerian people going about their lives. "It is best for there to be a war with Venom, then for them to foolishly unleash those monsters upon us. I will not subject our people to them."

"Our, sir?" Alex asked confusedly.

Pepper turned to face him with a small smile. "Yes, our. You have done much for us Alex, I think you are deserving of a place in our society."

"I-I...thank you sir."

"It is we who thank you." Pepper said as he led Alex to the door. "Oh, and Alex..." The human turned around. "Bring everyone back safely."

Alex was thinking on that as he walked into the briefing room. He looked around. Their was Starfox with their new temporary members and the wolves of the 48th. These were the people who would fight and possibly even die to prevent a catastrophe. They had his respect.

Alex walked up to the podium at the front of the room. During his walk up he looked to Krystal and Fay and gave them an encouraging grin. Once he arrived at the podium he prepared himself for a speech. He was never any good at them, but he would try his best, he cleared his throat. "Some of you may not know who I am or where I come from." He started off, at the sound of his deep voice everyone who was not paying attention focused on him.

"So I think some background is in order. I am a human, and I am not from around here. Most if not all of what you are about to hear is going to seem impossible or even laughable, but I would entreat you to hear me out. You see, I'm not even from this universe." Their was some mumbling at that piece of news, from all those who had not already heard his story. They quieted down when he resumed.

"I came from a different place, one that I hope to never see again. My people had unearthed something. They called it, the marker. At this he pressed something on the podium and the screen behind him activated to reveal a black twisted obelisk. It was etched with strange red runes that seemed to glow even through the electronic pane. "This thing was a source of almost infinite energy. Humanity was at the brink of collapse. Our reckless use of unsustainable resources and failing to find a way to create a way to keep going, caused us to reach a crisis point. The marker was considered an act of divine intervention. So, in out ignorance we sought to create more of them, without completely understanding what they were." He paused for a moment, and one of the 48th spoke up.

"What were they?" The voice was female, that being the only way to distinguish gender amongst them. Their suits hiding any noticeable traits.

"They were evil. The markers, and I mean plural, as we had constructed many, were sentient, and they had a plan. Now, I don't know everything about them, as we never fully understood them, but from what I gathered in the war was that they were only a piece of the whole. Each marker, had a undetectable signal, that which upon activation, would over time reanimate corpses." The room was deathly silent, and now he had their absolutely undivided attention.

"These now reanimated bodies would mutate into lethal killing machine. They would then seek out anyone and anything alive and kill it. This caused those bodies to change as well. My people called these things necromorphs. Through the events of the conflict, we had to totally shift our methods of waging war. For the sake of time, I will forgo any irrelevant information. The main focus for you, will be on how to fight them. I know that some of you will not be participating in the actual fight on the ground, but if you are shot down, and the venomians don't have the marker contained properly, you could find yourself facing one." While he said that he pointedly looked to his friends.

"I have brought with me, a recording pertaining to this objective. It takes place during the closing year of the war. It should help you better understand what you are going to be dealing with." He had hooked up one of his modules to the port on the podium. Once connected he started the playback. He had one last thing to say. "Some of the things you will witness will be...unforgettable." He said that last line with a forlorn tone.

"Hey Alexander wake up!" The point of view originated from a helmet cam. The helmet was looking down at a lap. The heavy armor of the individual, (who could only be Alex), was black and red. The helmet shifted violently as if struck.

He looked up into the green visor of a blue and white suit. "What the hell Santiago?" (It was Alex).

"Dude how can you sleep?" The other soldier, Santiago, asked in a strange accent.

"By closing my eyes." Alex responded sarcastically. He turned away from his friend for a moment to survey his surroundings. It was the hold of a gunship. There were three other soldiers besides Santiago and himself. The IDs read Briggs, Daniel, and Jonathan. Each wearing the same colors as Santiago. They were fiddling with their rifles and talking in low tones.

"Don't be an ass." Santiago said, laughing, dragging Alex's attention back to him.

"Don't ask stupid question!" Alex retorted, lightly slugging his friend in the arm.

"Jeez lieutenant, I was only asking." Santiago replied in feigned hurt.

The voice of the pilot interrupted. "Lieutenant, we are approaching the LZ, five mikes out."

"Copy Firehawk, notify me when we're one mike out." Alex ordered.

"Understood."

Alex stood up and twisted his neck sharply causing his vertebrae to pop. "All right listen up!" He shouted to his men. "We are nearing the landing zone outside the marker facilty. This entire planet is going to hell, the necros are running rampant through the streets. We need to stop them before they reach convergence. The marker facilty must be neutralized. Which means we have to get the bomb their. How is it Santiago?"

The marine checked his back, on it was a large rectangular device. "Functional sir!"

"Good, when it's armed we are going to fall back and get the hell out out of here."

"Sir yes sir!" His men shouted as they saluted.

"Sir, have you heard from command?" The soldier named Briggs asked.

"I'm afraid not, not since we lost contact four days ago, I can only assume the command post was overrun. It matters not! We will still complete the mission."

"Of course sir, but where will we go?" Daniel asked.

"We'll find a ship to get us off planet and to the nearest RV point." Suddenly there was a buzzing noise.

"Lieutenant, I've spotted a group of civilians, they're being pursued, what's the order?" The pilot asked over the intercom.

"Keep going."

"...Sir?" The pilot asked hesitantly."

"You heard me soldier! Keep going!" Alex shouted.

"Understood." The pilot grunted.

The hold was filled with a grim silence. After a moment Alex spoke up. "We can't save everyone."

"I know that sir." Briggs muttered. "But, we took an oath to defend the innocent."

"Yes, but sometimes the needs of the many out-way the needs of the few, and in this case it holds true." Alex replied.

"One mike." The pilot warned.

"Copy, when we disembark I want you to circle the area until we call in."

"Understood lieutenant."

Sixty seconds later the rear hatch opened and the five men stormed out and into a courtyard connected to a giant set of building. The entire area around them was coated in blood and the floor was carpeted with spent shell casings. They crunched through the film of blood and metal to the door. Three dead bodies lay in front of the large medal doors. Two were of guards, torn to pieces, and the other was a mutilated...thing. Without a thought, Alex tossed an incendiary grenade on it. The thing burst into flames, (and startling the viewers), roared and vaulted up. Almost uninterested Alex gunned it down and turned to his men.

"You know the drill, check your corners, always stay topped on ammo, and remember to stay alert."

"We know what to do." Santiago said confidently. Alex nodded and climbed through the wrecked doorframe.

The video paused and Alex addressed his audience. "Any questions?"

"I have one." A feminine voice answered. Alex tried to identify it and when he did he was surprised. It was Fara Phoenix. "Those things play dead?"

"Yes, I don't know if that suggests some level of intelligence, and frankly I don't want to."

"Any more?"

"Yeah I've got one. How did you know?" Wolf asked.

"I didn't, but you can never take chances."

"Hmm."

Alex pressed a button.

They all followed after him and into the lobby. Inside was a bloodbath. Dozens of body parts lay scattered across the marble flooring. There were Pools of congealed blood and even some dripping from the ceiling.

"Jesus!" Jonathan exclaimed.

"Fuck!" Daniel muttered.

"Let's go." Alex ordered and began to walk through the wreckage of humanity. His men fell in behind him and tried to gingerly step over the remains. Alex just stormed straight through.

After leaving the massacred lobby, they found themselves in the access corridor for the main building. With cautions steps they traversed the hallway. Guns roving to target vents and doorways. The entire length of it was shrouded in darkness. Three quarters of the way in they were attacked.

With a gurgling bellow a shape collided with Alex causing him to fall and drop his rifle with a clatter. While he wrestled with it another half dozen attacked his group. Jonathan kicked his enemy away and fired his gun into its bladed limbs. Daniel fired his shotgun and blew his target into organic shrapnel. Santiago had some sort of electrical cannon that fried the rest.

As they turned to help their commander they saw him ripping off one of the necromorphs blades and stabbing it back down into its chest distracting it momentarily. That gave him the time to finish it off with a quick burst from his handgun. Santiago helped him to his feet. "Jeez, your always the one getting jumped, they must have a personal grudge."

"I can't help it if they like my charming personality." Alex said as he retrieved his errant rifle.

"Maybe if you toned it down a bit." Daniel deadpanned.

"Stow it marine!" Alex ordered jokingly.

"Yes sir!" Daniels said, saluting exaggeratedly.

Jonathan shoved him. "We need to be serious."

"Let them joke around." Briggs jumped in. "We don't have much to smile about now a-days."

"Alright." Jonathan acceded. "Your right."

"Arguing aside, we should get moving." Alex suggested.

"Got it." Santiago agreed and walked after Alex, who took point again.

Several minutes later they arrived at an intersection. "Where do we go now sir?" Briggs asked.

"Give me a minute." Alex scolded as he tried to figure out the map.

"Uh...we may not have a minute." Jonathan warned as he sighted down a hallway. "I've got movement."

"Positions!" Alex shouted.

Each member of his team took a corridor. With a piercing wail, forms emerged from the blackness. As they neared the lights of the marines's guns the necromorphs's frighting visages were revealed. Consisting of decaying bodies of the building's staff, twisted into parodies of human physique, they shambled forth.

"OPEN FIRE!" Alex barked, and his men complied. The darkened corridors were given light from the muzzle flashes of their guns. With concentrated precision the necromorphs began to fall. As the bodies piled up it seemed that they would be overwhelmed.

"Reloading!" Daniel shouted as he quickly tried to change mags. Slamming it home he brought his rifle back up...and was hit in the chest by a flurry of spikes. He flew back and dropped his gun. Alex took his fallen friends place and fired a kinesis blast freezing up the venue in front of him, and then lobbed a frag into the helpless monsters, it exploded flinging parts and putrid flesh down both lanes.

Using the time he had just purchased, Alex checked over Daniel. The spikes had smashed through the armor and into Daniel's vulnerable flesh. Blood seeped out of the edges of the many wound, and he was breathing heavily.

"F-F-Fuck!" Daniel stuttered painfully, and coughed wetly. Alex checked his rig, it was an ominous orange at the base of his spine, and it's hue was slowly shifting red.

"Hold on Daniel!" Alex shouted over the sound of gunfire. "Stay with me!"

"You know the procedure sir." Daniel said breathlessly.

"No, your gonna be fine Daniel." Alex denied. "Your going to make it back to your family."

Daniel grabbed the collar of Alex's suit and dragged him down until they were visor to visor. "Don't. Lie. To. Me." He enunciated each word heavily. "I know I'm dead, and even if I wasn't, you can't finish this with a wounded man." Daniel was right, they needed speed to accomplish the mission. They were already being trapped in the intersection.

"I can't just leave you here!" Alex refuted.

"You can and you will sir!" Daniel ordered his commander. "I'll cover your retreat."

Alex's tone was solemn. "Alright soldier, hold them back." He handed Daniel two frags.

"Sir?"

"Yeah?"

"Don't let my family find out how I died."

"I...okay I won't." Alex stood up. "Let's move marines!"

"What about Daniel?" Jonathan asked as he unloaded his gun down the hall. Santiago was too busy keeping the tide on his side back to respond, and Briggs was tossing a fire bomb at a large shape in the dark.

"He's covering our retreat."

"...Understood."

Falling back down the corridor that led deeper into the facility they could here the faint rapid bursts of a single rifle until it petered out. Then there was a loud bang, and silence. They stopped and looked back down the lightless corridor they had come from. "Let's go." Alex grunted, and they jogged away.

Several minutes of silence later they entered a room that was filled with columns and benches. Most likely it was a rest area for the off duty workers. Now it was a silent tomb. "Keep close, we should be close to the containment room." Alex said as they walked down the divide between the pillars.

"We shouldn't have left him." Santiago muttered angrily as he walked behind Alex.

"We had no choice."

"Of course we did!" Santiago fired back, "there is always a choice!"

Alex swung back to face him. "What would you have had me do huh? Drag him with us? Have him slow us down until we were slaughtered?" His tone was caustic and volatile.

"I don't know! But we could have done something!" Santiago said stubbornly.

Alex pushed his friend onto a pillar and got in his face, "we don't have time for this shit! We need to focus on the mission." Jonathan and Briggs watched the fight with uncertainty.

"You let him die!" Santiago shouted.

"HE TOLD ME TO!" Alex roared into Santiago's face. "You think I wanted to leave him, that I enjoyed it?"

"N-"

"So why would you fight me? You think the universe gives a fuck about Daniel? Do you think that debating on wether or not we could have saved him, IN THE MIDDLE OF THE FUCKING MISSON!, is a good idea?"

"No." Santiago said looking down.

"Then man the fuck up and keep moving, the best we can do for him now is to finish this. After all, your not the one who has to go to his family and tell his wife and kids that he died. You won't have to see their faces as they look at you, like your the one who killed him." Alex threw Santiago off the pillar and continued to walk down the pathway.

Alex could hear Santiago being helped up by Briggs and Jonathan. "He's right you know." Briggs added.

"I know." Santiago said sadly as they followed after their leader.

"Excuse me!" A voice said in the room, causing Alex to pause it.

"Yes?" He asked and cleared his throat, his voice was a little watery.

"Do you regret leaving him behind?" It came from a member of the 48th.

"Regret is not the word I would use, I wished, that I didn't have to, but I don't regret it." Alex answered.

"How long were your people at war?" This came from Fara.

"For many years."

"How did it end?" She asked.

He paused for a long time. His face was empty of expression. "As all things do eventually." He replied mysteriously. He waited a few more seconds for any more questions, and when there was none he started it up again.

Alex was walking ahead of his men when he spotted movement. There was a beak peering from about ten columns away, he froze. "Stalkers!" He whispered loudly, alerting his team.

Stalkers were some of the most lethal things in existence. Intelligence, brutality, and numbers were what made them so.

"Crap." Briggs moaned.

"Regroup." They formed up into a circle, back to back and sat tight. Seeing that their trap had been foiled, the monsters ran out of hiding. The stalkers charged towards the group, and were met with pulse rounds.

There were seven of them. Three had been downed before they got any closer. The first one to reach them bowled Santiago over and kept going. The second one was halted by a stasis that Briggs had thrown, and was dismembered efficiently by accurate rounds. The last two slammed into Jonathan and carried him off into the darkness, his cries echoed throughout the vast chamber, the last sight of him was his sapphire glowing visor as it disappeared, and his right hand stretched out in a silent call for aid.

"JONATHAN!" Alex roared and chased after him. Leaving Santiago and Biggs to finish off the rest. He was breathing heavily as he ran off into the darkness carelessly. His HUD was bobbing up and down as he sprinted pell mell in the direction of the fading light. He was tormented by the screaming coming from Jonathan's radio, making him fight all the harder to reach him. His efforts were rewarded when he finally arrived, trailing after a road of blood. His reward was his suffering, the trail ended at the upper torso of his friend. His entire lower half was gone. Carried of no doubt by the beast. He was about to walk away in defeat when he heard it.

"L-l-lieutenant?"

Jonathan was still alive. "Jon?"

"I-it h-hurts sir." The now dying man said in-between hiccups.

"I-I know i-it does." Alex said as he walked closer to his friend. He was chocking on his own tears.

"M-m-make I-it st-stop." Jonathan cried out in pain. His voice was flecked with a guttural wet rasp.

"Okay...I will." Alex said as he pulled out his pistol. (At this point, everyone in the briefing room watched as Alex walked out.) he brought the barrel of the gun to rest on his friends head. His other hand had grabbed onto Jonathan's left, and was holding it comfortingly.

"I-I'm s-s-sorry I-I failed you." He gasped out.

"No no no no, it's I who failed you." Alex whispered back, voice filled with loss and pain. Wet droplets began to ping off of his HUD and pool in the middle, obscuring the body.

"T-tell m-m-my f-family I will a-a-always be t-there for them." Jonathan forced out of dying lips.

"You have my word." Alex promised.

"I-it's been a-an h-honor."

"The honor was mine."

...BANG!

Alex straightened up from the body. He pulled out a grenade and placed it on his friends chest. He pulled the pin and walked away. A loud explosion signaled a deed done. That's when a screech was heard and a shadow flew at him.

With a roar of rage and anguish Alex intercepted it halfway, colliding with bone creaking force. The two adversaries tumbled in a pile of limbs. Still screaming his hate, Alex assaulted the body of his enemy, with relentless wet thumps he smashed his gauntleted fists at anywhere he could see. Having taken damage the stalker tried to flee, it never had the chance. Alex grabbed it by the legs and swung it into a column, it impacted with a crunch. He fell upon the unmoving corpse and beat on it until he felt hands grab him and pull him away. He was about to strike out at them when he heard voices over his own, he had still been screaming.

"Sir, it's us!" Santiago shouted in fear, a fist about to hit him.

Alex ceased struggling and went limp. All the fight had drained out of him. His men had to support him all the way to the exit of the room, his feet dangling as they dragged him. At the doorway he shrugged them off and walked on his own. He had no more words to say.

"Sir?" Briggs asked hesitantly.

"We keep going." Was all Alex said.

Half an hour of wandering later, they finally found the marker. It was hard to believe that such an object was responsible for so much. The brown and red pillar was inside a containment cell. The whitewashed walls gleamed a dangerous red, reflected off the light emitting from the marker itself. "Place the charge." Alex ordered and took position at the door. He leaned on the frame heavily, as if it was the only thing holding him up anymore. They could only guess what was floating through his mind. What he was feeling about all this.

Briggs and Santiago walked up to the marker and began to set up the device. Alex turned back to face the hall. He watched it diligently as he waited for them to finish. It was disturbing, where had all the necromorphs gone? Surely they should be protecting their icon, their means of existence? The questions went unanswered.

"We're done here sir." Santiago called out.

"Good, set the timer, let's get the hell out of here. They left the marker room and quickly traversed the building to find their way back. The entire trip back was uneventful, not a single sighting it even sound of any necromorphs. It was eerie and foreboding. They climbed out of the doorway and back into the light. "Call Firehawk."

Briggs went on the line and began to call in their extraction. Alex studied his surroundings while he waited. Nothing but death and destruction met his gaze. This was how humanity fell, not from its own greed and selfishness, but from an alien plague. A disease upon the entirety of creation. It was almost unbelievable, and ironic, in a dark way.

"Sir, pick up is on the way." Briggs jarred Alex out of his melancholic observation.

"Alright, sit tight gentlemen, we are getting out of here." They waited for their ship to arrive. Each man contemplating on what led them there. Five minutes later their wait was ended when Firehawk flew up and landed at the far end of the courtyard in a whine of engine noise, and the clatter of displaced shel casings.

They walked to the gunship when their peaceful journey was broken by an ear splitting howl. Spilling forth from the broken doorway of the facility was a tidal wave of necrotic death. Every single necro from the inner works of the building vomited forth from the blackness. "RUN!" Alex shouted and hauled ass to the gunship. Santiago was running alongside him when he got hit in the leg by a barb, he fell flat on his face.

Alex stopped and whipped back and clamped down on the neck brace of Santiago's suit, and began to pull him. They were too slow, the necromorphs were closing in. At that rate they would never make it. "Get him out of here!" Briggs demanded and halted. He turned to the hoard and engaged them. He was doing his best to buy his comrades time.

The time he bought for them allowed them to board the gunship. Just as they dragged themselves onto the ramp, Briggs was pulled down to the ground, still firing at the hoard. A massive necromorph impaled him into the concrete floor and dragged its blade through his guts. Crying out in agony, Briggs was raised up to its face, where it began to tear at his neck. The fatally wounded marine held up a small handheld stick with a red button on top, the detonator. He pressed the plunger and the sky lit up in a blinding flash of light.

The retreating gunship began to shake violently from the concussive force alone. It almost crashed back down onto the surface. But luckily for them its course held true. They made it, and stopped the necromorphs from finishing the cycle, but at the cost of three brave souls. They had been Alex's friends for three years, they had been family. Alex collapsed onto the unforgiving and cold deck plating.

Santiago limped up to his friend and fell next to him. "We did it." He muttered, his tone should have been joyous, but it sounded awfully like despair.

"Yes we did." Alex replied quietly, the silent hold a testament to the sacrifices made.


	16. Chapter 16

AN: Sorry its a little late, I had a research paper due, it took longer than I had would of liked.

Shattered

Chapter XVI

Alex was sitting on a bench at a park outside the building. All around him families strolled through the park. Pups running rampant in front like a skirmishing screen of cavalry, being held in check by the parents. It was peaceful. That was not taking into account the occasional staring, but by now he was used to it. Staring off into space, he though back to that mission. He had almost forgotten about Briggs, Jonathan, and Daniel. He scolded himself, how could he have? They were his friends!

They had died following his orders, he was responsible for them. The least he could have done was remembered them and their sacrifice. What kind of man was he, if he could erase the memories of his brothers in arms? Alex knew that it was in some small part due to the fact that he was no longer in his old reality.

It was all so surreal. There were times when he questioned his sanity. Maybe this was all some elaborate hallucination caused by the markers. Perhaps he was still on the station and had not activated the explosive. Was this all a fever dream?

"Usually the lecturer doesn't walk away, during the lecture." A vaguely familiar feminine voice said jokingly.

He looked to see who had interrupted his crack pot theories. It was Fara, the russet furred vixen who had temporarily joined Starfox, she was standing next to the bench and clasping her arms together. Her long and graceful ears were lopsided, he thought it gave her a roguish appearance. Green jewels stared at him, eyes holding a remarkable similarity to Krystal's.

"Can I help you?" He grunted. Usually he wouldn't have been so rude, but old memories resurfaced made for a grumpy human.

She seemed a little put off by his dismissive tone, her arms almost imperceptibly tightening to herself, ears flopping down submissively, and tail going flaccid. Immediately he began to feel like an ass. "Forgive my harsh remark, I am not feeling myself today." He sighed sadly.

She loosened up and responded. "That's okay, I understand."

He noticed that she was still standing so he scooted over and bid her to sit. With a thankful smile she sat next to him. "What can I do for you?"

"Nothing for the moment, I just thought that we should talk. Seeing as your not..." She trailed off looking for the right words, arms gesturing in the frigid air.

"Not from around here?" He supplied with a grin.

She nodded and smiled thinly. "I suppose that's how you could phrase it."

"So, what would you like to know?"

They spent over an hour talking on that bench. She surprised him, she was amazingly witty and yet, so fragile. Something had hurt her along time ago, Alex decided to do his best to help. She was curious, so he answered the many questions she had truthfully, all but one anyways.

"So what do you think your people are doing right now?" She asked.

"Uh, pardon?"

"You know, are they still fighting the necromorphs? Or did they win?"

Pepper had not told most people of what happened, and frankly he liked that. "I like to think that they won." He told her. He knew the truth but, a minuscule part of himself hoped, beyond hope, that if he told the lie long enough he could convince himself. That somewhere out there, his people still lived.

"That's good." Fara said.

"Yes...yes it is." Alex stood up slowly. "We should get going back huh?"

"Yeah, they are probably waiting for us." Fara agreed reluctantly. She was beginning to enjoy spending time with this man. He was so unlike Fox, mature and kind. Fox wasn't bad, he was just not the kind of guy for her. (And it didn't help that she still carried a grudge.) Alex on the other hand, was an engaging speaker and his sense of humor was funny to witness. Not to mention he was easy on the eyes. His muscular physique, and robust features lent him a strong bearing.

"Are you okay?" She heard him ask, she had been standing there for a while unmoving.

"Yes!" She yipped before collecting herself. "...Yes, I'm fine." Her chops burning a bright pink.

Lucky for her he was not paying attention, as he was walking away by then. She followed after him and reentered the building. They traveled back to the room. Alex was surprised to see that they all were still there, he had though some would have left by now.

He retook his place at the podium. "As you have seen, these things are no laughing matter. For the members of the 48th, I will release this recording to your commander. I expect for you to familiarize yourselves with all the types of necromorphs you have seen. As of right now, there is no set date for the raid, but I guarantee it will be soon. That's all." He wanted to be short and to the point, he was done taking about his past that day.

He left the stand and walked out of the room, again, ignoring the looks coming from them. He didn't much feel like talking to his friends, or even Krystal and Fay. Right now he just wanted to sleep.

With that in mind, the journey back to The Great Fox was swift and uneventful. Once inside he went to his room and laid on his bed. He tried to sleep, but any headway was lost when he remembered everything. His night would have been one of restlessness if not for Krystal and Fay, who entered his room and cuddled up to him. Their warm and fuzzy bodies driving away his inner demons. For this he was forever grateful. As his eyes became heavy, he said one last thing. "I love you two." Hearing that they just snuggled closer blanketing him in warmth and love.

The next morning was...interesting. Half asleep, in nothing but his pants and a pair of worn out socks, he stumbled groggily into the kitchenette and started to fiddle with the coffee machine. He was grumbling about tails in his mouth when he heard a voice.

"Rough mourning?"

Accessing the forbidden knowledge of the ancients, he twirled around to face the voice waving his arms threateningly. His display of martial prowess did not impress the vixen before him, who only snorted. Realizing his Kung fu moves had no effect he straightened up and cleared his throat. "Uh...hello Fara."

She laughed softly, like the tinkling of melodious bells. "Hi Alex."

"Just to be clear, that never happened." He said offhandedly as he turned back to the machine.

"Oh...I think that it did." She said smugly.

"Well clear you have been seeing things because I have no idea of what your referring to." Alex muttered pressing the last button on the machine, which was now leaking the strong fragrance of coffee into the air.

"Sure." She replied, rolling her eyes, filled with amusement.

The door opened with a hiss and Peppy walked into the room to stand by the device responsible for waking up his tired old bones. "Hey Pep!" Alex said cheerily.

"Morning son." The aged hare replied tiredly.

"Are you okay?" Alex asked voice laced with concern. He liked the old hare. He never really new his father, his death was long ago, and Peppy always seemed like the man, (or in this case hare), his father would have been, if he were still alive.

"I'm fine, just a little tired, I'm not as spry as I used to be." The hare chuckled.

Still, the human led Peppy to the table and helped him into a chair. "Wait here I'll get you your coffee." Alex ordered firmly. Then he walked over to the machine and began to pour out a mug. Fara watched this with a smile, the man was a puzzle, one she swore to herself, to solve. There were many facets of his personality, compassion, care, strength, brutality, and self-sacrifice to name a few.

"Thanks son." Peppy exhaled as Alex handed him the steaming mug of liquid life. He took a sip and sighed in contentment, and leaned back. "That's just what I needed." They sat in companionable silence until Slippy walked in with Falco behind him.

Ever since he had been informed of his fathers kidnapping, Slippy had been a wreck. Luckily Falco was there for him. They may act at odds most of the time, but in fact they were close friends. Falco had taken it upon himself to watch over the fragile toad. And so with his help, Slippy was returned to a frame of mind somewhat resembling normal.

"Salutations Slip!" Alex exclaimed.

"Hiyah Alex." Slippy said in return, taking a seat at the table.

"How are you holding up?"

"I'll survive." The toad answered with a expulsion of carbon dioxide.

"Of course, and so will your father." Alex said with conviction, kneeling and patting Slip on the shoulder. "I will do everything in my power to save him, you have my word."

The amphibian visibly cheered up at that. "Thanks Alex."

"No need for thanks friend, it is simply the right thing to do." He raised himself back to his feet and grabbed his mug of dark brown coffee. "Now! I have a disgruntled vixen and collie to awaken!" Alex exclaimed merrily, walking out I the room and whistling a foreign upbeat tune.

Fara gazed at his retreating visage with a rueful smile, such a strange man.

Alex once more walked into his bedroom, yet Krystal and Fay were no where to be seen. "Where did they go?" He mumbled to himself. 'Wait! There!' Two tails jutting out from the edge of the blanket mound, one fluffy blue and white, the other brown and thick. They probably thought they could sneak in another few minutes of sleep, not on his watch!

He quietly placed his mug on the table and moved into a position. He covertly entered the fortress of sheets and wormed his way to the sleeping vixen and collie. Krystal's maw was unflatteringly hanging open and she was snoring most obnoxiously. Her long tongue flapped out to hang outside her mouth, like a worm trapped half way out of its hole.

Fay was curled up into a ball of fur. The only discernible feature being her long tail and wet canid nose. Both women were sleeping heavily and would probably not wake up without a little effort. Which he would enjoy, thoroughly. He moved into position.

With a grin, he flew over them. As he went by he grabbed them both by the waist simultaneously, and pulled them off the bed. The three fell of the bed in a pile. Krystal had awoken instantly. "What the heck!" She grumbled angrily staring at the smiling perpetrator.

"Morning!" He replied enthusiastically, and scooped up the still unconscious Fay. He began to tickle her forcefully. Her eyes shot open and she laughed uncontrollably.

"Stop, stop." She pleaded in-between giggles.

"Never!" He shouted and continued his attack. Fay tried to tumble out of his grip but he was too strong. Eventually she surrendered and went limp. In which case he let her go. She collapsed on to the floor and heaved in deep breaths. She looked at Alex with a smile.

"Good morning!" She said when she had recovered, still displaying her indestructible optimism.

Alex brought her into a hug and laughed. "Yes it is."

Krystal whined from neglect. Alex included her in his hug, long arms more then suitable in holding the both of them. They stayed like that for a awhile. Sadly they had things to do that day so Alex let them go. "So, what's the plan today?" Krystal asked him.

"Well, I need to work on my armor, I'll be needing it soon." He replied, maintaing his enthusiasm, even though the thought of going against those monsters once more plagued him.

Krystal and Fay frowned sadly at that. They just wanted for life to go back to normal. No more space monsters, no more cataclysmic threats, just them and him. By it seemed that life had other plans. "Why can't we have at least a month where nothing goes wrong." Fay sighed.

"I don't know honey." Alex said as he got back up. He helped the women back to their feet and picked up his mug of coffee. He was about to leave when he remember something. He sighed and put the mug back down.

"Forgetting something?" Krystal asked with a smirk.

Indeed he was. "Maybe some clothes." He replied offhandedly. He was still in his pants and socks, having forgotten to dress. He was about to go get his only pair of clothes when Krystal put a paw on his chest.

"Wait right here!" She commanded and left the room.

Alex was puzzled and looked to Fay for an answer, she just shrugged and shook her head. Seconds later Krystal returned with a large box. "What's this?" He wondered.

"A gift." She replied with a smile, canines flashing briefly.

Interested, he opened it. Inside lay an assortment of clothes. He pulled out a pair of pant and was surprised to see that there was no hole cut into the seat. Krystal saw his curiosa expression and answered. "I had them especially made."

"...how, did you get my dimensions?" He asked incredulously.

"...ways." She answered mysteriously.

"Huh." That was hardly comforting. But that didn't matter, he had new clothes! He quickly went into the bathroom and put on one of the outfits. When he finished getting dressed he walked out of the bathroom with a frown. "These...are kinda tight." She had bought him some sort of fitness shirt and pants, black of course, and they were...form fitting.

"I though you would look good in them." She told him. "Clearly I was correct." She was looking at him, intently. Fay had a dazed expression.

"I guess so, and I suppose they are not all that bad." He said as he grabbed his jacket and put it on, and placed his cap on his head. "I will see you ladies later." He bowed with a flourish and walked out.

"Excellent choice of clothing." Fay commented to Krystal.

"Yep." She replied.

Alex left his room and headed for the ship's armory. He had out his suit and weapons in there after working on it with Slippy. He needed to tweak it a tiny bit more and maybe add a few things. When he opened the door he was met with a odd sight.

Falco was lavishing over his knew handgun, and staring menacingly at a familiarly grey wolf. Wolf (his name ironically), was in the small range of the ship. The lupine was firing his blaster at a brace of targets lining the wall. From what Alex could see he was a pretty descent marksman.

"Hey Falco." He greeted the distracted avian.

"Hi Alex." He answered back, eyes still glued to the wolf in the range.

Alex moved to block his vision. "What are you doing?"

"Keeping an eye on him." The avian replied.

"Why?"

"You can't trust the guy."

"Because?..."

"He's wolf!" The avian exclaimed, as if that was all that needed to be said.

"But...he is your teammate for now." Alex said in confusion.

"Doesn't matter." Falco replied stubbornly.

Alex sighed. "Can you do me a favor?"

"Sure."

"Just, let it go for now. There are better things to watch out for." Alex said.

Falco looked uncertain. "Really?"

"Really."

"Right fine I'll leave him alone." Falco grumbled.

"Good." Alex said satisfied, with that taken care of he went to his suit of armor he had stood it at the end of the room. It was past all the blaster rifles and pistols on the racks. When he reached it he opened the inside and took a look. He went over it, the armor's internals were functioning properly and had been repaired. That aside he checked the stasis and telekinesis devices. Both were okay, no damage taken from any of the previous battles.

Now that he knew the armor was good he sought about adding things to it. Using what little engineering skills he possessed, Alex grafted some more plating to it. While he was working he felt a tap on his shoulder. He set down the torch and other supplies and turned around.

Wolf was standing behind him. "What are you doing there?" He asked.

Alex gestured to the armor, Wolf nodded. "Just adding some things to my armor."

"Huh, cool." Wolf looked like he had something to say, but didn't know how to say it.

"Need something?"

"Uh...I just wanted to talk." Wolf finally said.

"Alright." Alex replied and shifted his body away from his suit. "What do you wanna talk about?"

"I was hoping you could fill me in on this whole space zombie business."

"Oh, well I don't particularly like talking about it. How about I just give you something, it'll do a better job then I ever would."

"That'll work."

"Here." Alex took off the video player on his suit and handed it over. "This doubles as a video player and a sort of archive thing. With this, all your questions will be answered."

"Cool." Wolf said and took it from him.

"Just find me when your done, and I'll take it back." Alex said before turning back to his armor.

"Okay, I will." Wolf promised before walking away to find a spot to use it.

Fox opened the door to the armory to find Wolf directly on the opposite side. "Wolf." He muttered

"Hey Fox." Wolf greeted distractedly before walking past holding something. Puzzled, Fox watched the lupine walk away. He shrugged it off and entered. Inside Falco was on the range, testing his new pistol. The blue high-powered shots whizzing down-range. Alex was tinkering with his ebony suit of armor. Fox decided to talk to him. He walked over and said his hellos.

"Sup Fox." Alex said over the sound of the welding torch. He was wearing a mask, sparks flew off of it as he melded something to his suit.

"Hey Alex, I wanted to know, what you talked about with pepper, the specifics." Fox explained.

"Sure, let me just put this stuff away, I was done anyway." Alex stored the tools and sealed up his armor. After that he walked out of the armory with Fox alongside. They went to the den, inside they sat at the table. "So, what did you want again?"

"I was hoping you could tell me what you and Pepper talked about."

"Okay, well we just talked about the plans, and I voiced my concern about Venomian retribution."

"What did he say?"

"He said that any retaliation would be better then a necromorph outbreak."

Fox sighed. "He's right, I don't even want to think about what it would be like."

"Your right, you don't." Alex said sadly.

"...I didn't mean to dredge up any bad memories." Fox said apologetically.

"It's alright, I'll carry them till I die." Alex said dismissively.

The metallic door to the den clanged open and Penelope and Lupa walked in, with Fara. When Fox saw her he looked extremely uncomfortable, the vulpine attempted to hide behind Alex's bulk. His tail gave him away, the orange and white tipped appendage stuck out like a sore thumb.

"Hi Alex...Hi Fox." Fara hailed.

"Oh! Hey Fara." Fox muttered nervously scratching the back of his head and coming out of his obvious hiding place.

"Alex!" Penelope shouted before running to him, breaking the tense silence.

"Hello little one." He said and picked her up, and placed her on one of the chairs next to him. Far and Lupa sat on the opposite side, much to Fox's dismay. Alex just smiled at his discomfort, from what Fara had told him, he deserved it a little.

"What are you doing today." Fara asked.

"If Pepper chooses, we will be moving out today, for Venom." He replied Grimly.

"I see."

"Honestly I hope it is today, I must save Slip's father." Alex said with a determined expression.

She nodded at that and turned to Fox. She was still mad at him. But in the interest of an effective team she tried to be civil. "So...Fox, how have you been?"

The orange vulpine looked startled, he had not expected her to be so calm. "Uh...I'm doing fine."

"That's good." The vixen said with a neutral smile. There! She had not been hostile.

"Big brother?" Penelope said tugging in his jacket.

"Yes little one?" He said looking down to her.

"Are you coming back?" She asked innocently, her wide crimson eyes looking at him wonderingly.

"Of course, no monster is going to take me down, I'm too awesome." He said with a comical puffing of his chest.

She giggled and hugged him. "Yep! You showed those monsters when you saved me!"

"I saved you for myself!" He growled playful and began to wrestle with her. She knocked him out of the chair, her on top futilely pummeling his chest with small paws. The adults at the table watched with smiles and laughs. Fox looked to Lupa and grinned, she returned it.

"Hark! I am slain!" Alex suddenly exclaimed and gave off a fake death gurgle, falling to the floor dramatically. The still giggling pup sitting on his chest.

That's when Wolf walked in. He saw the human planning dead with the little girl sitting triumphantly on his chest, and gave a rare smile. "Looks like the big bad human has finally met his match." He snickered jokingly.

"So it seems." Fox agreed from his seat. Out of the blue the vulpine's and lupine's communicators beeped.

"Fox here."

"This is Wolf." They said unanimously.

"This is Commander Dobrey of the Howling Wolves, the General has green lit the mission, It will commence in five hours, Pepper had requested your presence." A gravely voice said.

"Understood." Wolf and Fox replied.

With a sigh, Alex got up from his defeated pose, Penelope clambered off him. "Copy that." He turned to the little lupine and said sadly, "it seems are fun time is over."

"Awwwwww." She whined.

"Yeah, I'm afraid so." Alex grumbled. They said their goodbyes, Fara said she would catch up later. So Alex, Wolf, and Fox left. On the way to the meeting with Pepper Wolf handed him back his recorder.

"Thanks." He said.

"No problem." Alex replied. In no time at all they found themselves back at Pepper's office, for the second time that day. "What do you need General?"

"I have a bit of good." The old hound said.

"Really?" Fox wondered curiously.

"Yes, in a surprising moment today, I was contacted by Andrew Oikonny."

"How in the hell is that good news?" Fox demanded angrily. He still held a deep seated hatred for the primate.

"Because Fox, he had agreed to the mission." Pepper answered.

Fox broke, "waaa..." He mumbled.

"Yes, he contacted me and asked for assistance. It seems that his head of science is a little crazy." Pepper said with a grin.

"I don't follow." Wolf grumbled.

"The scientist, Eric Liedman, is obsessed with this Project that Okionny wouldn't tell me about."

"Markers." Alex said grimly.

"I could only hazard that guess. So I asked him, 'why would we help him?' He said that the research was a danger to both factions, and he would be willing to renegotiate our earlier peace terms."

"That's great news!" Fox said beaming with excitement. "Know we won't have to go to war."

Wolf brought him back down to Corneria. "So how exactly are we supposed to do the mission?"

"Oikonny has cleared out all outside defenses for the base, but he can only do it for so long. Still, the scientist has followers in the fleet, so there will be ships in space over the facility. But the path to the ground will be clear." Pepper explained.

"Won't they retaliate anyways?" Wolf questioned.

"Oikonny has said that he will brush off the battle as a terrorist attack." Pepper replied.

"When are we doing this?" Alex asked.

"As soon as you get back to your ship, but remember, The Great Fox will have to deploy from outside Venom's radar and sight range. If they see it, they will know it is us who attacked. No matter of convincing from Oikonny would do otherwise."

"Yes sir!" Fox saluted.

"Good luck gentleman, the future of our way of life rides with you." The old bloodhound said gravely.

"I won't let you down sir!" Alex said determinedly.

"Just remember to come back alive." Pepper replied.


	17. Chapter 17

Shattered

Chapter XVII

Alex sat silently in the armory. He was fiddling with his assault rifle with uncharacteristically distracted hands. The Great Fox and the others ships in the strike force had left Corneria an hour ago. Soon he would be heading down to the surface of a planet that held all he despised in the universe.

Markers! The vile abominations didn't seem to have an end. No matter where Alex went, they followed, and brought ruination and suffering with them. Except this time, others would be coming with him to stop them. Others who could die trying to prevent something they shouldn't even have to worry about. Others who did not deserve to have these calamitous artifacts threatening their existence.

He felt tired, deep in the marrow of his bones. The ever foreboding knowledge of what they could do weighed heavily on his conscious. He did not even want to conceive the thoughts of what a full-blown marker incursion would do to these cornerians. It sickened him to consider the ramifications. His mind was swarming with all those concerns and troubles, to much to focus. He set the rifle down on the table and sighed.

"You okay?" He heard a wonderful voice ask. Alex turned to see Krystal watching him from the doorway, arms crossed, one ear bent slightly, green eyes studying him intently.

"No, but I will be when this is all over." He answered as he leaned back with another long breathed sigh.

She walked over to him and slid onto his lap. She slowly sat down and hugged him comfortingly. She held him for awhile in the silence of the armory, the only two souls within. "We will get through this." She said confidently.

"I know we will." Alex replied, placing an armored gauntlet upon her furry paw and rubbed the back if it. "I have too much on the line to fail." He looked into her eyes, drinking in her beauty one last time before he had to go.

Likewise she looked into his golden brown orbs. This was the man who had become her everything. From the moment they met, she had felt a connection with him, beyond that of any she had before. Fay had said something similar to her thoughts the other day. Suddenly she felt him place his other hand on her cheek and angled her muzzle to face him, gently rubbing the ruff there. Taking the initiative she locked lips with him, they kissed passionately, expressing their love to one another as best they could at the moment. He brought his hand to the back of her head and pulled her close.

They embraced each other. Alex traced one of his hands across her back softly in loving patterns. Krystal wrapped her arms around his back and squeezed him tighter. "You know I love you right?" She said with a murr, her muzzle buried into his chest.

"Of course I do." He replied with a laugh. "I thought that was abundantly clear."

"Promise me you'll come back." She pleaded suddenly, with a hint of desperation.

"...I promise." He pledged, he WOULD come back.

"Good." She bobbed her head satisfied. They held each other for a long time, simply happy in their closeness. But all good things come to an end eventually.

With great reluctance, Alex stood up from his seat, helping Krystal up as well. "I gotta get going, I need to talk to Fay before I head out."

Krystal sighed in disappointment and let him go, paw lingering just a second more on his shoulder. "Aright, look after yourself, okay?"

"I will." Alex said, kissing her on the cheek. "Do you know where she is?"

"Yeah, she's in the hanger waiting with the others." Krystal answered. "I'll take you there."

"Thanks, you're the best." Alex followed after his loving vixen and walked arm in arm to the hanger. Thy held each other, cherish the time they had before they must depart for a short while.

The hanger door opened and he entered with the cerulean vixen of his dreams. Standing by their ships were all the members of the Starfox team, permanent and temporary. (Wolf, was standing already in his Wolfen, he had refused to use any other fighter.) Also next to them was a small black gunship, the one he would be taking down. Lupa, Penelope, and Peppy were there to see the team off. One being too young to be a pilot and the others either ill suited or too old.

Miyu was talking with Fay, she saw Alex and gave him a friendly feline grin and pointed him out to Fay with a clawed digit. The collie ran when she spotted him. She hugged him and kissed him on the lips as soon as she was close enough. She pulled back after a moment. "Heya!"

"Hey Fay." He greeted the lively canine. "How's my girl doing?"

"Fantastic! We're gonna save the day, again!" She announced, pointy teeth gleaming with her broad smile.

"Yeah, but you guys get the easy part." He chuckled, and scratched the back of her head behind the ears. She sighed in contentment and leaned into his pampering. "Stay safe up there huh?" He said as he prepared to go talk with Fox.

"Stay safe down there." She retorted playfully before prancing off back to her ship. He smiled at her retreating figure and went to the orange vulpine in question.

"Alex." Fox said cordially.

"Sup Fox, ready to move out?" Alex asked.

"Yeah, just waiting for the word."

"You guys got my back?"

"Not a single particle of energy will hit you." Fox vowed.

"Awesome."

"Hey!" Falco shouted from his ship. "Watch your ass down there!"

"Why would I watch my own ass?" Alex wondered jokingly. The avian just snerked and climbed in to his Arwing. That's when Alex felt a light fluffy impact on his armored shins.

"Good luck!" Penelope exclaimed clinging to his legs and looking up. Lupa walked over to the errant cub with Fara in tow.

"Hello little one, come to see me off?"

"Yep!"

"Great, just what I needed." Alex swooped her up into a hug. "What are you two doing?" He asked, turning to Fara and Lupa.

"Keeping this ball of destructive fur under control." Lupa replied.

"And I'm just readying up." Fara answered.

"Alright, cool. When we come back, the party will be on me." He said, setting Penelope back down onto the decking. He his his goodbyes and walked to the gunship to await the signal. Slippy was just closing up a panel on the side when he saw Alex.

"Finished fixing your ride." The amphibian was wiping off his oily hands on a equally oily rag.

"Thanks Slip, I imagine I'll need it in peak form." Alex walked into the side hatch, before he closed it he hailed Slippy. "And Slip... I WILL get your father back."

"...thanks Alex."

"No problem, just focus on yourself for now, you'll fight better." The hatch closed and Slippy soon wormed his way into his Arwing.

The signal was given. Eight fighters and a gunship streaked out of the underbelly of The Great Fox. The dreadnought was hidden behind a celestial satellite on the outskirts of Venom's orbit. They flew to the planet, as they approached, an additional fleet of unmarked and unadorned ships slid into place around them.

This was the assault force, anything that would show alignment with Corneria had been stripped from them. Now, no matter what, they couldn't be implicated for the attack. Alex piloted the gunship quietly. He was too focused on the upcoming mission to converse with anyone. His and one other ship would swoop down to the planet and park outside the airbase, then they would fight their way into the facility beneath.

A small defense fleet lay ominously above their destination, several corvettes and cruisers. Each containg an unknown number of squadrons. The enemy must have seen them, as they discouraged their fighters and moved to engage. "We've got you covered." Fox said confidently.

Alex hung back with the other gunship and let the defense screen go ahead. He watched the two forces collide in a flash of green and red lasers. He now understood why Starfox were such fabled pilots, the enemy was practically useless. None could match their skills. Even the larger ships only slowed them down momentarily until they were crippled. It was amazing, he saw Krystal's fighter pull a reversal and wipe out three fighters that were chasing her. Even Fay was amazing, her interceptor zooming around the battle and picking off any stragglers. He had no idea of how incredible they were.

But out of all of them, it was Fox and Falco who shined. They were untouchable, almost casually blazing through, swatting enemies out of the air with a ruthless casualness that impressed him. Wolf and Fara fought their own battle, working together just to side of the main fight. Clearly they were still uncomfortable working with the team. They were also a threat to be recognized, downing whole units in minutes.

Slippy was not as graceful or effective, but he made up for it in his determination to get his father back. The toad's courage surprised him, it reminded him of himself a long time ago, when he had fought for his family. The amphibian defiantly faced gruesome odds. It went to show that courage and determination were traits that didn't care about appearances or age. The dogfight he witnessed as he headed for the surface would stay in his mind for the rest of his life.

Soon the battle faded out of view as he entered the atmosphere of Venom. The other gunship followed after his lead. That is when he got his first look at the surface.

The skies were a sickly green and the cities that riddled the surface were grim and dirty. This was not a place of sunshine. Alex began to pity the inhabitants of this place, life here was probably harsh and short. They didn't deserve to had necromorphs run rampant either, with that in mind he closed in on the airbase. It seemed that Oikonny had disabled the AA-batteries, because they weren't blasted out of the sky. That was plus in his opinion. He set down in front of the facilities doors. He only hoped that they had the necromorphs under control. Or if they were really lucky, the enemy had not yet reached that stage.

He activated the helmet and it sealed with a skittering clang. Alex stepped out of the ship and took a look around. The fields were deserted, it unsettled him. That's when the other ship set down aside his and the bay opened, revealing fifteen members of the 48th. The elite soldiers comforted him, they should be more them capable of dealing with any monsters below. Alex walked up to the one who had a commander's patch. He was surprised when the person took their helmet off to reveal the grey grizzled muzzle of Commander Dobrey.

"What are you doing here?" He asked in wonder.

"What I always do, leading my soldiers." The rough wolf answered.

"I didn't think to see you here."

"Well, I had to see these necros for myself." He grunted.

"In any case, it lightens my heart to know you are with us." Alex said meaningfully.

"Yes, well let's go kick some ass!" He barked, his soldiers growled in agreement.

Alex just nodded and walked to the big doors. They were probably locked...or not. The doors opens with the squeal of tortured metal, unveiling an empty hallway. This was foreboding. "Ready?" He asked Dobrey.

"Born ready." The wolf growled deeply. With that they entered the base.

In the skies above, Starfox fought the most intense battle of their carriers. The enemy was endless, for everyone shot down, another three took his place. It seemed that this crazy scientist had more followed then they had expected. The most frighting thing was their zeal, the enemy practically ran into their shots in their persist eve to shoot them down. It sickened Starfox to see people who valued their own lives so little.

"Fox, I need backup!" Miyu had four fighters chasing after her.

"I got you." He swooped in behind her and blew them up with a charged shot.

"Thanks!" She zoomed off to resume her aerial ballet. Her interceptor weaving through the slower ships and knocking them out of the sky.

"Hey Krys, his you holding up?"

"Fine Fox, I'm more worried about Alex." She answered as she dodged a blast and cracked a fighter open with a well placed flurry of lasers.

"Worried about him? Psssh he's fine, no one can take him down." Fox said grinning widely.

Alex fell flat on his ass, a bolt of energy smashed into his chestplate and off his feet. Everything had been perfect until thirty seconds ago. They had been ambushed by a security team. The gods must be playing a trick on him, he was the only one to get hit. He had opened a door and received the gift of a blaster bolt to the chest.

"Cover fire!" Dobrey roared and pulled Alex out of the doorway and to the side. His savior was protected by the disciplined and accurate shots of the 48th, preventing any guard from popping up to land a shot.

"Are you injured?" Dobrey asked concernedly.

"Nah I'm good, this armor will need to take allot more before it fails." Alex groaned as he sat back up. Mr at didn't mean that it was painless!

"Perfect." The wolf handed him his rifle back. "That means you can still fight."

"Till my dying days." Alex chuckled and took cover on the doorframe. Seconds after being shot he rolled into the room blazing at anything that moved with his rifle and grabbed cover behind a table. He pulled it down and started to fire behind it. His rounds connected with an ape that was hiding behind a desk, his chest was riddled with little puffs of red mist, the simian fell to the floor lifeless, gun flying out of nerveless hands. "One down!"

"Copy, moving up!" A soldier shouted throwing a grenade into the room. There was a bang and a flash of white, his suit's HUD automatically dimming to compensate. Ten troopers stormed into the room and gunned down the blinded guards.

"Alright keep moving!" Dobrey growled, "fined Beltino!"

"Yes sir!" A female soldier saluted and ran off with four others. They split into teams of five to search the facility. I would only be a matter of time before the scientific toad was found.

"Let's go!" Alex grunted following after Dobrey, I have girls to get back to."

The battle in space was over, the last enemy ship exploded only a few minutes earlier. Now Starfox and the remaining vessels waited for their ground team to report in. They went back to The Great Fox. As soon as they all were in the bridge Fox demanded that they link into Alex's suit.

The toad complied and started the sequence, yet something was wrong, it wouldn't work. That's when he realized that Alex had take it off. "Sorry Fox I can't, he removed the bug."

"Damn! I guess well just have to wait for them to get back." The vulpine sighed.

Krystal and Fay were nervous, they couldn't watch over him, couldn't see what he was going through. It bothered them to no end. Wolf just sat and fiddled with his pistol, acting uninterested. Fara sat with all the other girls as they sat in vigil for the ground team to comeback.

An hour and a half later they received word that the team was coming back. Ecstatic they raced down to the hanger to great the team. They all watched the gunship come to a stop alongside the the ships. The hold opened and the tired forms of the 48th filed out, none of them were without injuries, some minor some severe.

The team was speechless, they didn't look like conquering heroes, more like a defeated army trudging back home in shame. Slippy was having a fit. "Dad!" He shouted. That's when the aged toad climbed out of the ship, and walked over to the team. He looked tired and worn out, but alive. Slippy was in tears as he hugged his father. No one else came out of the gunship.

Then, an aged wolf walked over to the team and saluted stiffly, his armor was battered and broken. "Where's Alex?" Krystal wondered. She and the other women were staring at the dropship waiting for him to come out with his signature smile and joking manor.

The wolf remained silent and signaled for one of his men to come over, he was holding something. The wolf was handed the object, and then the wolf held it out for Fox to take.

It was a broken and bloody helmet...Alex's...broken and bloody helmet. The black helm looked accusing as it faced upwards in the wolf's furred grip. The red visor was fractured, into spiderweb thin lines crisscrossing all over. The entire left cheek was shredded, exposing the empty and crimson stained insides.

Fox took it and stared into the shattered visor, covered in flaky dry blood, paws shaking, he almost dropped it onto the floor, like a poisonous snake.

Peppy was trembling, his old heart barely able to handle it.

Slippy, Falco, Fara, Lupa, and Miyu were frozen, uncomprehending, or perhaps, refusing to accept.

Penelope just looked confused.

Yet no one was effected quite like Krystal and Fay.

"No no no no no no no no no." Krystal started to whisper in horror and backed away from the bloody relic until she hit the wall. Fay had fallen to her knees and was staring off into space. "NO NO NO NO NO!" She began to cry loudly as she slid to the floor, tears clogging her throat, now unable to continue her denials.

"Wha..wha...what happened." Fox asked hoarsely trying to find his voice.

"He sacrificed himself, to save the toad's father." Dobrey said stoically.

Slippy began to sway heavily, thoughts swirling around in his head, all the promises Alex had made to him. That he would save his father. And in the end he had...but at what cost?

"I am sorry beyond words." Dobrey said, his stalwart grey eyes watery. "He was a brave man and excellent soldier, but more then that, he was a hero. And he will never be forgotten, his story will he passed through the 48th for all eternity. As a pillar for all others to aspire to." The wolf turned and marched away back into the gunship. The other soldiers sadly followed their commander, their last sight of the legendary Starfox team was their faces full of despair.


	18. Chapter 18

Shattered

Chapter XVIII

The flight back to Corneria was spent in silence. Everyone was in the bridge, Krystal and Fay sat in the corner, the blue vixen fiercely clutching the rent and bloody helm. Her muzzle still dripping tears, poor Fay was slumped into her seat and holding her head in her paws. Fox sat in the captain's chair, his dull green eyes staring off into the space outside the window. Falco was staring at his blaster, rolling it around in his feathered hands, deep in thought.

Peppy was in his favorite chair, his long lapine ears were drooped to hang alongside his head. He was shining his glasses for the hundredth time, finding some small measure of comfort in the repetitive task

Slippy was sitting with his father, the two toads looked the second most worse for ware. Knowing that they had been the instigators of the humans downfall. No one blamed them, but they blamed themselves.

Fara and Miyu walked over to comfort the the sniffling vixen and collie. It was hard, considering they were crying just as hard.

Penelope was in the arms of her older sister. She had become mute when the reality of what happened to him bit her. She had cried herself to sleep, and her sister had carried her since. Lupa had not said a word since the news had been relayed. The two girls sharing their silence together.

Wolf was the only one who had not cried, he sat in a chair apart from the others. The lupine had takin the news and simply went off, having only entered the bridge five minutes ago.

"DOCKING AT CORNERIAN CENTRAL STARPORT." ROB intoned. He was at his station on the ship, he had no emotions to express.

The team had left the ship without any fanfare, taking a skycar back to headquarters. They trudged into the General's office, in significantly darker spirits then last they entered.

Pepper was sitting behind his desk and gazing thoughtfully out his window and into the streets. His visage was distant. He turned slowly to address them. "Hello Starfox, I wish that this was under better circumstances."

"I think we all wish that." Fox sighed. He looked back to his team, the women were still sniffling.

"Yes, I think so to. I won't waste your time, the funds have been wired to your accounts. The mission was a success after all." Pepper laid back in his seat heavily, changing the topic to one more...distressing. "The funeral will be at the end of the week...considering that there's no body, it will be more of a formality."

Fox nodded and did not respond, meanwhile, his team was silent. Beltino had been dropped off at his laboratory, Slippy had went with him. Wolf had just left as soon as the ship landed, and Fara had elected to stay for some reason. Lupa had stayed aboard to watch over Penelope. That left Falco, Fox, Krystal, Fay, Fara, and Miyu in the old hound's office.

"I understand if you need to go, I didn't know him as well as you did, but he was good man, one who didn't deserve all that happened to him." Pepper dismissed them, he was going to handle the rest of the political debacle with Oikonny, in order to cement the falsity of a terrorist attack.

They left his office and walked back to the ship, they couldn't stomach the pleasant air of the city. It made everything that happened seem like a fantastical lie. Like, when they got back, Alex would still be there, waiting for them with Penelope on his hip. He would be smiling and crack a joke, then he would make them something to eat and they would all sit-down to a delicious feast. And that's what was so crushing when they got back, he wasn't there.

When they dragged their feet back aboard, Fox turned to Krystal haltingly. "I...I...um, I need you to gather his personal effects."

She nodded quietly, one tear slowly glided down her furry cheek. It trailed over the blue fur, a shard of sparkling starlight in an ocean of cerulean. She walked off with Fay. When the door to his room opened they froze.

His smell still lingered, their sharp canine noses could still detect his comforting odor, it coated everything in the room. It was a like a thorny rose, it was wonderful, but it reminded them of their loss. They then went about the tragic business of collecting his things. They started with the desk and moved to the closet, placing the items inside a small plastic bin.

That's when they found it, the box he had concealed from them that he bought at the mall. It was a small thing, no bigger then shoebox. With bereaved hearts they opened the container.

That's when their hearts broke. Krystal lifted a necklace in her shaking paws. It was entirely made of silver and crimson rubies. It was thin and the center rectangular gem had an inscription on the silver backing. It read:

Krystal. You were a gem, shining in a lost man's darkness, lighting up in his blackest hour. You showed him why life had meaning. So now I give you a gem, so that no matter what, you will always have a light when the darkness comes.

Your's Forever,

Alexander

She stared at the inscription, finding a sense of warmth in the etched silver. He tears abated somewhat, for now she no longer felt like crying. This gift was a comfort in these dark times.

Fay was holding a light blue necklace, made of Fortuna sapphires. The cerulean links had a large opal centerpiece, that sparkled like the night sky. The back of this also had a description:

Fay, your cheerful and positive demeanor had brightened my life. I was a broken man, your unceasing care and geniality helped mend my deep scars. I hope that this will always remind you of how thankful I am.

Eternally yours,

Alexander

They stared at their gifts for a long time, the room all but forgotten. They hoped that in whatever afterlife he was in that he was happy and content.

The room was very dark, the lone figure was chained to a wall, several feet off the ground. He had been there for hours...days...years? He couldn't tell. All that he did know was that every so often an ape would come in and begin to torture him. The room was so very dark. They had taken his necklace, and now all he could see in the blackness were the archaic red runes adorning the wall. 'Were they there earlier? They must have been, they were always there, surrounding him, judging him. They whispered into his mind, tried to tempt him, but he remained strong, didn't he?

A door opened, chasing away his madness temporarily, and that damn ape walked in with his usual self-confident smirk. "Good Morning!" He greeted, voice filled with false kindness and joviality. "I hope you slept well."

The figure spat bloody saliva into the simians face. "Well that's not very friendly. You should be nicer considering you were responsible for destroying my precious marker." The ape scolded, wiping away the crimson spittle with a handkerchief.

"Go to hell!" The man growled in response.

"My my my! So feisty today!" The ape said in mock horror. "It's no matter, I will get what I want."

"Never, I'll never build those abominations for you. I would rather die!" The man shouted.

The ape tutted. "As if I needed your cooperation, I have ways of making you comply." The ape signaled and a cart was wheeled in, a wide and grisly assortment of tools lay upon it. "These will provide the inspiration for your assistance my good sir!" The simian gingerly lifted a cruel looking serrated blade, still covered in dried blood. He walked over and caressed it upon the bare skin of his captive. "Oh, I think I'm going to have fun today!" The simian, Eric Liedman, began to drag the blade across his prisoners skin. The anguished cries reverberated throughout the underground facility.

Fox was sitting in his chair, a ritual he preformed every day. His eyes scanned the outside of his ship, they were currently hovering over Corneria. 'Was this what Alex had died for? A world that didn't even belong to him.' Fox ruthlessly crushed that notion. Alex did belong here damnit! He deserved better. The orange vulpine sighed and brought his paws to the bridge of his muzzle.

The funeral had ended a few hours ago. It was a grim affair. All the members from the team that went to the surface had been there, as was General Pepper and a few dignitaries. They had all agreed that the news of his death should not be made public, so it was a small gathering. The team appreciated that.

The door to the bridge opened and Slippy entered. The toad had come back just before they journeyed into orbit. He spent all his time in his room, fiddling with the ruined helm of their closest friend. Fox was too sad to bother asking and so he left the young amphibian alone. And now, here he was. "Yeah Slip?"

"I found it."

"What?"

"The video player in his helmet, now we can see what happened. Maybe there is a chance he is still alive!" Slippy said with unusual enthusiasm. The death of his friend had taken a toll on the toad, and now he was grasping at straws. Still Fox decided to humor him.

"Alright Slip, play it."

"What about everybody else?"

Fox sighed. "Well then, go get them."

The excited toad ran out of the room. Many minutes later he returned with everyone. Fara was still with them, at this point Fox didn't know what to think about that, he knew know that it was his fault that things had gone sour between them. He dimmed his ego and decided to let her stay. But now the had something important to see. "So?" He gestured for Slippy to continue.

The toad jumped and ran over to the screen. He plugged in some sort of small device that looked foreign in origin. No doubt it was the deceased humans recorder. After a few seconds the screen went from black to a old corridor. "The recorder is damaged so its not going to play from the beginning." Slippy informed.

Alex was running down a hallway, with four other soldiers. "Where is this intersection?" He asked the one jogging alongside him.

At the sound of his voice, they all almost broke into fresh tears. If they tried they could imagine him in the room with them.

"Just around the bend." The man in the video responded. They quickly went around the corner and something impacted the soldier next to Alex.

"CONTACT!"

A swarm of necromorphs emerged from a side door. Alex punted off the one attached to his comrade and dragged him out of the line of fire. Meanwhile he blazed away with his assault rifle one handed.

The three others covered his retreat. Soon the swarm had been wiped out. "This is why you don't let these things spread." Alex muttered as he helped the injured soldier to his feet.

"Thanks sir!" The wolf exclaimed gratefully.

"No problem, don't make it a habit." He chuckled. They continued their search for the missing toad. "Get a hold of Dobrey, let him know we found another swarm."

"Yes sir!" A wolf grunted, his he let had been smacked off by a errant blade. Now he had a fresh cut alongside his jaw.

While he radioed, Alex headed for the most likely location for the scientist. It was a research wing, the perfect place to use a captured doctor. Inside was a mess, it seemed that a swarm of necros had rampaged through. Blood was splattered everywhere and as usual, there were no corpses. "Spread out, look for Beltino."

The team split into three groups, Alex went alone. After searching for twenty minutes they concluded that he wasn't there. As they moved to leave, Alex heard a cabinet creak. He stealthily walked over and when he grabbed the handle, ripped the door of its hinges and pointed his pistol inside.

Of course Beltino was inside. "Why didn't you just come out?" Alex grumbled.

"I didn't know if you were friends or some of Liedman's henchman." Beltino explained.

"Fair enough, in any case we gotta get you out of here." Alex began to lead the frightened toad to the door.

A vent at the opposite side of the room erupted spilling out the twisted forms of the necromorphs. As the four soldiers engaged the new threats Alex watched over the toad, blasting any that got to close with his rifle. A figure leaped at him making him smash it with his rifle. He unloaded the ret if the clip into the twitching corpse. After some minor injuries the team resumed moving.

"Dobrey, do you copy?" Alex said over the radio.

"Dobrey here."

"Is the marker destroyed?"

"The big ass monolith?"

"Yeah."

"Pile of scrap in about ten minutes." Dobrey barked, chuckling.

"Good, we have Beltino and are moving to the exit."

"Copy that, recalling the other team now." Dobrey got off the channel.

Halfway to the exit they were set upon by a squad of guards. Alex was crouching under a desk with the toad. "why the hell are they still trying to kill us? Don't they know that the necros are running around?" Alex popped out of cover real quick and fired a burst into the chest of a guard that had gotten to cocky. The lizard fell with a brand new set of holes. One of the wolves took a blaster bolt to the hand and dropped his rifle. Alex covered him with a grenade. It exploded clearing the rest of the room. "Keep moving!" He ordered and grabbed Beltino and led him to the exit once more. They arrived at the gates to the surface.

There was a huge firefight between Dobrey's and the other team and a whole platoons worth of guards. Alex's squad changed the tide. Now they were pushing back the enemy forces. That is when he saw Liedman. The crazy ape was standing amongst his men and shouting something incoherently. And to make matters worse, necromorphs had followed the sound of gunfire. There was a huge three way warzone standing in-between Beltino and the exit.

Alex decided to take the risk. He covered Beltino with his own body and ran through the battle. He was shot in the leg and collapsed growling in pain. Beltino had also stopped. "What the hell are you doing? Get outta here!" He ordered and pushed the toad away.

Beltino turned and ran. While he was running Alex scrambled into a standing position. He limped through the battle, dodging blaster bolts and shooting necromorphs.

He saw a simian throwing a grenade. It sailed straight past him and towards Beltino, he would never make it. Alex used the kinesis module to pull the grenade back. It exploded when it reached his hand.

The recording went berserk and they realized why. The helmet was soaring in the air, knocked off by the intensity of the close range blast. It landed in front of one of the wolves and he picked it up. The last few minutes it captured was Alex holding onto the stump off his left arm on his knees, it was completely removed at the elbow. Nothing but gristle and bone. As the soldiers dragged the toad out of the fight the camera was still facing the direction Alex was in.

A necromorph smashed into him sending them both to the floor, except he couldn't get up. He was missing an arm. As it was about to strike the whole base shook. The bomb had detonated destroying the marker. The necro fell to the floor squealing.

Two guards ran up and smashed the wounded human upside the head. Then they dragged his body away. A trail of blood followed after the unconscious form. That's when the soldier holding onto the camera ran out of the facility and into the hovering gunship.


	19. Chapter 19

Shattered

Chapter XIX

"He-he's still alive!" Fox shouted excitedly, pumping his paw in the air. The whole team was in a joyous uproar. Their human was not dead. It was a wonderful feeling. But it was slightly dampened by the fact that he was no doubt a prisoner of the insane scientist, and that he had sustained tremendous wounds.

"But his arm." Krystal muttered in horror. She had frozen in a shock when she saw her beloved holding onto his stump of an arm, she could still see, in her mind's eye, blood spurting onto the cold unforgiving metal flooring of that accursed facility. She was ecstatic beyond belief that he still lived, but...oh god his arm! She looked to Fay who held a paw out. Krystal gratefully took it, the collie squeezed comfortingly.

"We can't worry about that right now! We have to rescue him!" Falco exclaimed jumping up from his seat. He was holstering his gun and running out of the room. The avian absolutely refused to wait one more second, Alex was one of the very few friends he had made in his life. And he would be damned if he let him remain imprisoned.

"WAIT!" Peppy shouted, stalling the avian mid-run. "We need to have level heads about this, he is most likely in the hands of that ape Liedman. We have to formulate a plan." Peppy spoke with wisdom, stilling rapid hearts and restoring their grasp on the predicament.

Miyu surprisingly, was the next to speak. "Pep is right, if we want to save our friend we need to be smart about it."

Fox and Fara nodded in sync soon followed by everyone else. Krystal and Fay's were a little subdued though, their hearts and minds still focused on Alex's injuries.

"What ever we do it has to be done soon, I will not have him as that ape's prisoner for a second longer then necessary!" Fox growled, tail lashing back and forth like a whip. The vulpine fumed at the thought of his best friend in captivity. No doubt the despicably vile simian was doing horrendous things to Alex.

"I feel the same Fox." Peppy placated the furious vulpine. "I want to help him just as much as you, but as I said moments before, we must handle this with speed and intelligence."

"We need to get help!" Krystal suddenly blurted out. "I know Pepper will help is if he is explained the situation!" Her tone of voice was desperate and panicked. She wanted to bring her lover home.

"Don't worry, I'm sure he will." Fara consoled, patting the other vixen on her blue furred arm. She turned to Fox with a determined expression. "We need to leave immediately."

"Let's go then!" Falco exclaimed from the doorway, he had stood inside it as he watched them deliberate. He found it all pointless, they knew their friend was alive, so why weren't they already leaving?

Slippy was the first one to reach Falco, his speed startled everyone. The toad was just as anxious to retrieve their captured companion as the others.

With great haste they all left the great Fox and rushed to Pepper. Once the old hound had heard the news he vowed to assemble a strike-force to head to the location of the human. First though, he would have to get Okionny to cough up the whereabouts of the base.

It would take allot of political maneuvering, but he would succeeded, he owed that much to the human. So the reasonably impatient team had to sit it out, their wait was not pleasant. All they could think about was the suffering Alex would no doubt be experiencing at the hands of the accursed ape.

Alex was jolted awake by a surge of electricity coursing through his body. It was not a new feeling, the chains holding him up had a ground wire twisted into the links, a crude but effective means of delivering pain. He could feel his muscles spasming and he shuddered under the powerful voltage.

A few minutes later the feeling ceased. "Wakey wakey!" The infuriatingly happy voice of Dr, Liedman exclaimed. The bastard was always smiling. Alex would do anything to wipe that sickly smug grin off his face. The sheer arrogance of his jailer and torturer gnawed on his sanity. Luckily, or unluckily, Alex was not completely lucid or sane. The only other thing that he could feel and recognize beside impotent anger was pain.

But that didn't bother Alex, not anymore. He embraced it, it was the only way to not fully lose his mind. All Alex had to do was let the primal side of himself assume control. It allowed the suffering man to retreat into the sanctuary of his inner mind, where he could relive his memories of his friends and find some measure of peace. Yet the electrical assault dragged his consciousness halfway out of hiding. Now he would have to deal with the consequences.

Alex forced his eyes open to the frail image of the sadistic doctor. His golden eyes blazed their hatred at the simian who just looked back with a condescending smirk. He growled at the ape, struggling against his chains. The response was Liedman's mocking laughter. Now enraged Alex roared and began to exert his full strength on the restricting bindings. "Oh please, you can't break those." The ape dismissed chuckling evilly waving off Alex's efforts uncaringly.

Liedman continued his mocking laughter until he heard the groan of the chains. It seemed that Alex could indeed break the chains. Panicking Liedman fell backwards on his ass as Alex snapped the metal restraints. The simian squealed pathetically and scampered to the door. The feral human chased him down but was narrowly averted by the door slamming shut. Furious at the the fact the damned doctor escaped retribution he pounded futilely on the thick metal doors, one arm ending at the elbow. (The wound had been painfully and shoddily healed, just enough to ensure that he would not pass away from it.) He had been denied his vengeance.

Some small part of Alex was satisfied marginally by the terrified shout the simian uttered and his undignified collapse onto the floor. It would make what was about to come worthwhile. He was laughing as the doors opened and he was pushed backwards by a heavy plastic slug to the chest. A squad of riot-geared guards charged in and pinned him to the floor. They ruthlessly beat him with the butt of their rifles and their armored boots, the entire time he continued to laugh. The human was content with his decision. He could feel his ribs give out and his right shoulder blade dislocate at an indiscernible time during the beating, and coughed up dark crimson frothy blood, it dribbled out of his lips and onto the frigid metal grating of the floor. One of his lungs had been punctured. He let out a wet sigh of relief, the air flowed through the holes in his lung. Maybe he would die this time?

Sadly, the abuse stopped and the guards filled out before the deed could be done. A few minutes Liedman reentered, with a single guard in tow and kneeled down to the fetal form of his prisoner. He leaned down to whisper, almost gently, in Alex's ear. The voice that poisoned his ear held a dark and foreboding placidity. "Maybe next time you'll FUCKING...SHOW...ME...RESPECT!" The ape punctuated each shouted syllable with a fist to the face. Alex felt his left cheekbone give way under the brutal punches. His vision flashed and wavered with white and black spots and he faded in and out of awareness. Eventually he completely blacked out. His last thought was that this day had been better then the one before.

He only hoped that his abuse would soon come to an end, he knew his sanity would not hold for another day. For when darkness claimed him, the voices of the dead filled his head. His pendant was gone, he no longer had the means of repelling the dormant madness that slumbered, deeply imbedded in his mind.

It took three days for Pepper to pry the information they needed to enact their rescue plan. It seemed that Oikonny was thankful for their assistance in removing the good doctor, but thought that he didn't need to continue to cooperate. He no longer cared about Liedman, he was just happy to know that he was no longer on Venom.

That philosophy didn't fly with Pepper, after much coercion the aged hound got the information they needed. As soon as they got it from Pepper, Starfox bolted to their ship and took off, leaving the rest of the recovery team in the dust. They had their destination, and they wouldn't wait on anyone.

The information led to another secret base, this one was on the inhospitable world of Fichina. With troubled hearts and anxious minds they traveled to the harsh environmental planet. As The Great Fox neared the ice-ball of a planet, Krystal and Fay stood in the observatory, wearing their suits, ready to make planetfall. "You think he's down there?" Krystal asked Fay as they took in the sights below.

"I know he is, and we will get him back." Fay replied with a certainty that helped to calm the vixen down. Her emotions had been every-which-way since the discovery that her love still lived.

"I wish I had your confidence." Krystal sighed, her posture becoming slouched. Her once lively and fluffy cerulean tail lay meekly on the decking. Fay wrapped Krystal up in a hug, sharing her strength with the vixen.

The door to the observatory opened and Falco ran in, breathlessly. "Let's go! The Arwings are ready for launch, and Pepper's reinforcement will be arriving soon!" The avian said hurriedly, bouncing in place. He was a bird of action, and he needed to get going.

"Kay bird boy." Fay said as the avian ran out of the door. She then herded Krystal out and down to the hanger.

Inside they saw the entire team waiting. Even Peppy had decided to come, brushing aside the others concern. He would not sit idly by as the others went to save Alex. That boy had become something of a son to the old hare. And he would die before he let a son of his remain a prisoner to any one, insane ape scientist or not.

Lupa and Penelope were there to see them off. The little wolf cub had not really understood the video, but she had grasped the fact that Alex was still alive.

"Is big brother coming back?" She looked up to Krystal as the vixen walked to her ship.

"Of course he is, even if I have to drag him back here myself." Krystal replied with a smile, which Penelope returned, innocent and bright.

"Let's move people!" Falco ordered loudly and impatiently from his cockpit, he was ready and raring to go. Krystal bid goodbye to the duo remaining behind and climbed I to her Arwing.

As the determined team headed down to the planet all Krystal could do was pray that Alex was right, and that she was going to make that pus filled sack that looked like an ape eat his own guts.

His mind was gone, nothing but fragmented dreams and memories. Who was this Alex fellow? Whoever he was he had a good life. The observer in his mind agreed. Then he began to bicker with his own shattered self. He didn't even know who he was. Was HE this Alex?

Only thing he knew for certain was that at the edge of his thoughts lingered a dark and malevolent entity. It tried to trick him with its velvety soft whispers but even his decimated consciousness would not be deceived. It was no friend of his! The thing would never get what it wanted from him!...what did it want? Maybe he should listen and fi-no! That's what it wanted him to do!

The internal war was halted when a voice, from the outside, rang in his head like the damning tone of a funeral bell. "I think that the last beating broke him." It sounded more frustrated then annoyed. "I suppose we could just kill him, I don't think we could get anything useful from him anymore. No...wait, I have a better idea, leave him here, let him die...alone...in the darkness." The unknown voice chuckled maliciously and faded, followed by the sound of a door slamming.

Once more he was shrouded in the darkness and insanity of his own mind. He, ever so slowly, descended into the realm of madness. What the good doctor and his dying patient did not know, was that his rescue was at hand.

But...were they too late?

The team touched down outside the facility, a few kilometers away. Their arrival had been shrouded by the arctic storms and blizzards. As they clambered out of their Arwings, they instinctively huddled together for warmth. The weather was beyond freezing, it was the kind of cold that you almost didn't feel. It just sucked the heat out off you silently and without warning.

Krystal and the girls stayed close together as the guys went to forage ahead. Now was not the time to worry about the cold, they had a much more important focus. The rescue of their friend and family member.

Soon they arrived at the outskirts of the hidden base. "W-w-what d-d-do we do n-n-now?" Slippy asked with his teeth chattering.

"We wait for the signal, and then we go in and save Alex." Fox answered simply to the amphibian. His paws were firmly tucked into his jacket pockets and his tail had been secured in a little sleeve.

"What a plan!" Falco exclaimed with fake enthusiasm. "It's almost as if you had just made it up!"

Before he could continue Krystal slugged his arm and growled. "Now is not the time for games." She was agitated, her heart burned with a deadly fire, when the signal was given she would unleash her rage upon the pathetic beings who would dare take her man from her. The vixen would not stop until he was found and the ape lay dead at her hindpaws.

Falco was about to fire off a retort when he saw the vixen's blazing emerald orbs. He changed tactics and backed away slowly, feathered hands held defensively in front of him. "Right...got that...no jokes." He moved to hide behind Fox, who was not thrilled with the avian's antics.

"Now, crappy jokes aside. We should get ready, the signal will be given as soon as the fleet arrives." Fox led the others to a small hill outside the facility. When the time came they would charge the gates. Hopefully the landmasters would provide a high enough degree of firepower that they would get there intact.

Krystal lingered in the back of the group, she clutched her staff grimly, Fay watched her worriedly. "You okay?"

Krystal looked up, her fiery eyes dimmed slightly, and she sniffled. She held an aura of anger and strength, but inside she was frightened and trembling. She just wanted her life back to the way it was before, when her days had been filled with a loving man and good friends. "I just want him back."

"I know, I do to." Fay said, bringing Krystal up into a hug. "We all do." Both of them were surprised when they felt another two bodies join the hug.

"Don't worry Krystal, we'll get Alex back!" Miyu said confidently. She had her trademark smirk, one canine peaking out from her fuzzy lips.

"Yes...we...will get him back." Fara said awkwardly as she joined the hug, patting Krystal on the back.

Still, Krystal appreciated her efforts all the same. "T-t-thank you guys." She sniffled, the multiple warm furred bodies warming her's and her heart.

Fox and the other guys looked on, feeling a growing sense of determination. They will save him, and they will bring brutal justice to his captors.

Moments later, a searing beam of iridescent red energy blasted away the a large portion of the compounds wall. "That's the signal!" Fox shouted, brandishing his blaster and running down the hill. Soon he was followed by the rest of the team. As they approached the gates, a trio of landmasters were deployed via transport ships, and began to lay waste to the outer compound.

It seemed that the mission had begun, but would they find what they were looking for down in the depths?


	20. Chapter 20

Shattered

Chapter XX

He was throttled out of his sleep by the calamitous shaking of his small prison cell. The man was unsurprised to find himself chained to the wall, he had been so for several days. These chains were of a much better quality then the last ones, he would not break them this time. As he hung there, he couldn't help but wonder...who was he? He had faint memories of some strange animal people, they seemed to be friends. But then again, that ape thing was also an animal person and he was the one who tortured him.

So the nameless man had a dilemma, should he trust anyone? Could he even trust himself? After all the entity at the back of his mind had many voices, not all unknown. Was he, even now, making this decision with its influence? There were too many variables for the unnamed man to try to solve. For how could he solve them if he didn't even know who he was? The questions were endless and they seemed to loop around in his corroded mind.

How could he know if he was doing the right thing if he didn't know himself? What was his name again? Daniel...Santiago...Joseph...Briggs...Alex? There were so many names, so many dead people. Maybe he was dead and this was some twisted hell he had to go through for the evil he had done. The whispering was growing louder, almost deafening as it reached a crescendo. WHAT WAS HIS NAME? He cried out in his mind, silencing the whispering voices infesting it. He had bought himself some time to think, about his next step. The few voices he heard began to deliberate.

After a brief internal debate with himself he decided not to trust anyone in this foul and dark place, no longer will he fall prey to these vicious animals! For now he would bide his time, and prepare himself for a window of opportunity. And when it came, he would not let anything stand in his way. The broken man tensed against his metallic binds, and readied for action. But he was quickly losing his determination, as he waited in the dark, his taunt muscles slackened and he hung low in the air. His defiance was running out, soon he would not be able to even hold his head high.

The gates exploded in a flash of green cannon fire. The huge landmaster battle tanks created the hole with a concentrated barrage as they steamrolled into the base. Utilizing the opening, Starfox ran in. They were greeted with a wall of defensive fire. They would have to hold out until the ground troops arrived to reinforce them.

Fox laid down a lethally accurate slurry of red pulses from his trusty heavily modified blaster. This allowed his team to seek cover amongst the debris. Falco and Miyu then used their guns to get Fox into cover. They used this method to piggyback closer to the enemy. The landmasters rolled in behind them leveling structures and destroying entire squads in bright beams of green death.

As the tanks covered them from the majority of their enemy, Starfox took the fight to the guards defending the entrance to the underground base. As they approached, he howling of engines entering the atmosphere signaled the entrance of the soldiers who would be assisting the team in the raid. The heavy cornerian dropships landed a few meters away. The bay doors opened to disgorge the might of the CDF. The compounds guards although skilled, could not stand up to the superior marksmanship of the team, and the overwhelming power of the vengeful rescuers. Each team member was worth over a dozen commandos.

Peppy was a campaigner, having fought in hundreds of battles. His experience dwarfed the entire team out together, even in his old age he was a fearsome warrior. He had participated in the first Lylat Wars having earned a reputation for his skill, when he served alongside James Mccloud.

Slippy on the other hand, was not a fighter. His value lay in his mechanical knowledge and his ability to fly an Arwing without getting shot down. But down here, in this fight to save his friend, he shined just as bright as the others. His usual bumbling replaced with a stalwart determination that was...inspiring.

Falco had a certain...flare, if you will, his combat style was entertaining. He acted as if he was a gladiator from Cornerian's ancient past. His moves were always showy, acting like his battle was being observed by a crowd roaring its approval. That didn't mean that he was careless and fake, on the contrary his boastful martial prowess, belied a serious and wrathful anger. The avian's rage at the ensnarement of his brother in arms was changed into the excessive, but also amazing feats he accomplished.

Fara had found herself sticking close to Slippy and Pepper, the two were still the only ones, besides Alex, that she felt comfortable around. The russet furred vixen was a decent combatant. She had been top of her class in the academy and she was glad that her skills had not diminished since then. She fought hard, harder then she had in any out of time before. This was a personal vendetta, they had stolen from her, a nice guy. Nice guys were hard to find nowadays, and she would be damned before she let him die.

Miyu and Fay the interceptor pilots, however, were not crack shots or skilled CQC experts. But what they did have was daring and bravery. Even though they knew that they were not the best, they tried all the same. And for their efforts, they were rewarded. Both had already claimed several of the enemy, and as they fought, their prowess visibly improved. Soon they were just as good as any other person on the team. Yet all their might was eclipsed when Krystal moved.

When they got to a certain range, Krystal began to unleash her fury. The smoldering vixen leaped over the barricades and fell among a squad of guards and destroyed them utterly. Her expertise with the staff superseding any of their hand-to-hand skills. As she stood over the wrecked foes she saw another group approaching and launched a trio of fireballs from the tip of her cerininan weapon. The fools never made it into cover.

The balls of flame exploded amidst them, the lucky ones were killed in the blast. The less fortunate were alive long enough to burn. As the others regrouped with the enraged vixen, none had the heart to put them out of their misery. "Well Krystal...shit." Falco muttered in awe as he took in her grisly handiwork.

She stood their, her purple and black bodysuit miraculously untarnished by the fires of war, and looked to the doors of the base. That is where her Alex was, and no one and no thing would stand in her way. Fay watched her friend with apprehension, she was not the same vixen she used to be. Fay just prayed that they would soon get Alex back and Krystal could go back to normal.

She missed him desperately to, but she couldn't act so angry, it just wasn't her. The collie was a kind soul, too innocent to truly become so furious. But she was glad she had a friend like Krystal, someone who could be strong enough for the both of them.

"All right guys, this is it." Fox said grimly as he walked to the massive metal doors of the underground base. He turned to look at all his friends. "He is here, down there somewhere, in the depraved hands of that horrible ape. We will go down, and we will bring him back home."

As the legendary orange vulpine spoke, the base around him was being subdued by the CDF soldiers. They fought with awe inspiring vigor, they had all heard of the human, and his work to keep the people of their home system safe from the terrible undead menace. Each soldier knew that they would give it their all, whatever it took to save the one who had done so much. This had been an all volunteer mission, and they had answered the call. So many had come that they couldn't take them all. In the end Pepper had decided on who would go. Fourteen tank crews and two hundred and fifty cornerian regulars. It was they who had finished the mop up and came to witness the end of Fox's speech.

The vulpine saw the crowd and upped his ante. "Alex, the human, who did everything he could, for a people he did not have any connection to, needs are help. And I ask all of you, WILL YOU ANSWER THE CALL!" He shouted that last part, and raised a closed paw in the air. The answer was deafening as Starfox, and the CDF roared in response. "Well then let's go get him!" Fox moved a paw to the side panel activated it. The doors to the base slid open.

Inside lay the defenders, the poor sods had no idea of what they would be facing. And as the doors to the base opened, they, in their final moments, saw.

The man, or whatever was left of him, could hear weapons fire outside his door. It seemed that something had not gone in his captor's favor. He chuckled grimly at that. No matter what happened to him now, he would know that his jailer had been foiled, his vile plotting prevented. The only wish left to the broken man was that before it was all said and done, he would be the one to end the bastard.

There was a particularly loud explosion and then silence, someone had won the fight in the room before his. He could only hope that whoever it was, they could finally put him out of his misery. The door to his chamber slowly began to open, the tangible light of either freedom, or the ending of his suffering lanced in from the cracked door. As it slowly slid open, the man without a name raised his tired and beaten head, and looked to see who had come to him. The light blinded his deprived eyes, turning the approaching figures into silhouettes.

They only thing he did hear was a female voice cry out in glee and sorrow. "ALEX!" The at odds tones rang clearly in the smoggy thoughts of the stranger. It sparked something in him. There were women he knew, Krystal...Fay. And then there was a name, the one she had shouted.

Was that his name? After all this time, did he finally have a title to address himself? Or perhaps it was another trick of the many whispers in his diseased mind? In any case, it was too early to tell. He could hear growls of male rage and female wails as something activated the restraints. The chains that had been holding him up for what seemed like his entire life, clanked as they lowered him to the floor. Yet before they could hit the ground, he was grabbed by a unknown number of hands. These hands held him aloft, carrying him out of the darkness and into the light.

The defenders of the facility fell like harvested wheat before the might of the pissed of cornerians. One of their heroes had been captured and they would fight like beasts to get him back. Starfox led the charge into the underground depths. Fox in front, Krystal steps behind, both blasting away in concert with staff and blaster. The duo was the most dazzling, their familiar friendship allowing them to work so closely together. Right behind them was Fay Miyu and Falco. The three were amazing in their own regards, having been baptized in war, Fay and Miyu fought as hard and well as the great Falco himself. Lagging behind them was the aged hare and out of shape amphibian Peppy and Slippy. The two were not tough but they managed to keep up, pushing themselves beyond what they believed they could.

And finally, behind them were the rest of the soldiers, even the tank drivers had left their vehicles to join in the fighting below. They kept the majority of the enemy off Starfox so they could delve deeper into the compound and recover their missing man.

As Fox and Krystal ran, punishing any foolhardy enough to stand in their way, they kept a look out for the scientist responsible for this entire mess. They had to leave the soldiers behind to keep the extraction zone clear, as they went deeper inside. Starfox found an elevator and used it, the guards were no match for them inside they took a guess and headed for the deepest part of the base. The doors opened to a nightmare. There were numerous doors along both sides leading out from the opened elevator. Half way down the hall, a squad of guards had erected a haphazard barricade of chairs and a table.

Seven apes were lying in wait, as they rose up to attack, the team responded faster then the apes anticipated. They fired a salvo of blaster bolts into the simians, wounding several of them. In response, a trio of bolts hit Fox in the chest sending him to the ground in a heap.

Enraged, Falco dove forward and let loose a withering volley of powerful bolts. The strength of his handgun tore straight into the cover and out of the apes. Four of the seven were killed, cauterized holes blasting into their torsos. As the team covered her, Krystal rolled closer and launched a huge fireball that hit the apes position and consumed them in a raging inferno.

Not giving it a second look, they rushed over to Fox. As Miyu turned him over the vulpine groaned. There were three burn holes in his white ribbed flight jacket. He pulled it aside to reveal the armored bodysuit that Alex had given him, the suit had absorbed the trio of deadly lasers. "Lucky bastard!" Falco exclaimed happily.

"Don't feel like it." Fox moaned, clutching his now sore chest.

"Oh man up." Fara barked and nudged him with a boot. "Its not bad, you'll survive."

"Starting to regret letting you stay on." The orange vulpine mumbled jokingly as he was helped up by Slippy.

"Yeah well now your stuck with me." Fara teased, sticking her long tongue out at him.

"Whoo!" Fox muttered half heartedly, waving his arms in fake cheer.

"All right enough playing around, we've got a human to rescue!" Peppy stopped their bantering, reminding them of the solemness of their mission and making them nod, continuing to look for their lost man.

As they walked down the corridor they could see into the cells from the one sided windows. Inside lay the broken remains of the ape's own people. Most huddled in corners and whispered madly to themselves. It seemed that the scientist had experimented on his lackeys. That made them hate the vile ape even more, sadly they had not found him in the attack up to this point. They could only assume that he had jumped ship and abandoned his men, another deplorable act.

At the far end of the corridor laid a door, faraway from the others. It seemed to have been purposefully placed away from the hallway ceiling lights. It was the only one left to check, so with thumping hearts they opened the door.

As the light filtered in, they could see its occupant, he was not at all in good shape. Krystal ran forward, her body was trembling as she cried out in happiness. "ALEX!" Yet soon her shout turned into a mewl. The man they had come to rescue was hanging from giant metal chains, a meter and a half off the ground. But that wasn't the worst part, his left arm had been sewed up by what must have been a sadistic surgeon, his face was a bruised wreck, left cheek sagging, his right shoulder hung limply from an obviously dislocated socket, and his legs and torso trickled a dark crimson river, cascading down the tattered black body suit he wore. The only thing that was going for them was the fact they could still see his chest move, signifying he still lived.

Fox snarled and growled like a caged beast as he saw his friend. The orange vulpine's paws clenched and unclenched, his dagger-like claws flexed in anger. The sheer outrage on his muzzle was mirrored on the other men's faces. This injustice could not stand, they would find his kidnapper and subject him to the righteous fury of the Starfox team. But before that, they would have to get Alex out of here.

Falco paced in the doorway, his anger had not been sated, in point of fact it had been inflamed. This was not how he wanted it to be, Alex should have been waiting for them, with a hilarious quip and a laugh. He SHOULD NOT be hanging almost lifelessly off the chains of some underground hellhole. The avian muttered to himself, the words "vengeance" and "retribution" were the ones he repeated the most.

Peppy, the usually emotionally contained hare, had a few undetectable tears rolling down the grey fur of his muzzle. He had known that it would not be easy, when they found him, but this was unexpected! The damn ape doctor had really done a number on him. If he wasn't shattered before, he definitely was now.

As Slippy numbly stumbled over to the button that would lower Alex down, he could hear the keening wails of the women as they saw what had been done to the kind and brave man they had all grown to know and love. As he slammed the vile controller for the contraption Slippy felt a dark feeling manifest in his gut. The toad was usually easy going and, he had to admit, a little of a pushover. But when he saw the man who had pledged himself to the rescue of his father, the little amphibian found an inner strength begin to grow. He would find the ape responsible and bring him down to his knees.

The button pressed, the chains clattered as they strangely, almost softly lowered the one they had been holding, to the ground. Before he could even touch the floor, Fay ran up and grabbed his body. Krystal Miyu and Fara soon joined her as they lowered him and released the confining steel contraptions.

Krystal brought a shaking blue paw to his head and gently trailed it down the ruined side of his face. She was beyond the point of tears, she was so upset she couldn't even produce them. She gasped when he moaned "Krystal...Fay." And brought his only remaining hand to her paw. The other arm moved subconsciously, but lacked the appendage to hold out. She grasped the hand and held on tightly Fay had grabbed it also when she heard him call her name. His eyes opened for a brief moment, golden and wild, and he mumbled out one sentence that chilled her blood as his eyes locked onto hers. "W-who am I?" He then fainted, and went limp, breathing turning shallow and a disturbing gurgle resonating from his chest.

With unbelievable speed, they took him away from that dark place. When the soldiers had seen him they let loose animalistic howls of rage and anguish. This should not happen to good people, especially one who had given much for them. With grim resolution they helped Starfox get him off the planet. Taking him up in a gunship as the team took their fighters back.

Once back on The Great Fox, they immediately carried him to the medical bay. They set him on a cot and wired him up to the machine. It didn't look good, it was even worse then they had guessed. In addition to the obvious wounds, he had several broken ribs, a collapsed lung, and his leg bones had been cracked. It would take at least a year of rehabilitation before he could even being to return to normal. The only light shining in the darkness was that they had fixed him up some and should be able to make a replacement robotic limb for his left arm. But they would need to do it on Corneria, as they didn't have the facilities in The Great Fox to do that. Lupa had done what she could before she left to go get Penelope. All that was left was to hope that he awoke from his coma.

Fox walked over to the comatose human and placed a orange paw on his left shoulder. "Alex, I will see you get better, I swear it." He turned and walked out of the infirmary, he had to set the way back into the ship with ROB's help.

Falco stood sentinel at the foot of the bed, even though their was no need he had taken up the job. It was a surprising move from the otherwise stone cold avian. Slippy and Peppy sat in a couple of chairs at the side of the cot. They talked quietly amongst themselves, occasionally looking back to the bed.

Krystal had crawled onto the bed with Alex, snuggling up to his beaten form. She refused to abandon him, no matter how bad a condition he was in. Fay also got on the bed, laying on his other side. Miyu and Fara had pulled up the last two chairs in the room to the bedside. They all watched over the man who had become so much to them.

An hour later, after Krystal and Fay had fallen asleep, the doors opened and a nervous Penelope and Lupa walked in. The young child seemed to understand what was going on as she didn't enter with her usual playfulness. She was actually rather subdued as she plodded to the side of his bed, her shoeless hindpaws pattered with each soft pad hitting the ground. The pup clambered onto the bed and snuggled in-between Krystal and Fay to lay on his chest. Luckily, they had been able to reset his ribs and inflate and patch his lung. Otherwise she would have worsened his condition.

Lupa moved to stand by Falco, and turned to him. "How bad is it?" She saw him with a doctors eye, but wanted to get his opinion as well.

The avian sighed and replied heavily. "Pretty bad, but I know he'll pull through, the bastard is tough." He turned to her, blue eyes glowing with suppressed rage. "You should have seen what they did to him." Falco's feathers stood up straight, signifying his anger. "If I find that ape son of a bitch I'll kill him!"

Lupa patted his shoulder, calming him. "Give him one for me will ya?"

"With pleasure." Falco grunted, turning his focus back to his assumed charge. Lupa stood next to him quietly, waiting for the moment that either Alex woke up or they got back to Corneria.

Fox sat on the bridge alone. The vulpine was staring at the star charts, watching the emblem depicting The Great Fox as it neared Corneria. As he pondered the recent events, he growled to himself.

The only other time he could recall being this upset was when he was told his father was gone. This monster, Liedman, needed to be out down like a rabid animal. This orange vulpine would be the one to carry out the sentence. There would be no trial for the ape, just swift justice by the barrel of a gun. His bracer vibrated and released a tune. "Fox."

"This is General Pepper, how did the operation go?"

Fox exhaled loudly and leaned back in his padded chair. "It was a success, but it wasn't as great as we hoped."

"What's the problem?" The old hound's voice was concerned.

"Well we got Alex, but I don't know if he will recover." The orange vulpine began rubbing the bridge of his muzzle. Why couldn't life be easier?

"Care to elaborate?"

"I think it would be better to see for yourself sir." Fox replied sadly, he didn't think he could go in detail over the line without breaking down.

"I...see, meet me at Cornerian Medical then." Pepper ordered.

"Copy that sir." The communicator went dark, making the bridge quiet again, but the silence brought thinking. Fox did not want to think, it was not happy thoughts.

As it turned out, Alex did not wake up before they landed. They had to wheel him aboard the gunship, the same one from last time, and fly him down to the planet. Once more they found themselves on the roof, the same team of doctors as before. Fox couldn't help but feel a dark irony in it all. They even almost had the same room, but went to the one adjacent to it instead.

All they could do now was wait. Soon Pepper arrived with his bodyguard entourage. He walked in and took in the state of the team and the incapacitated human in the bed. He went over to Fox. "What happened?"

Fox and the others then filled him in in the events prior to their arrival, telling the story up until that point. Pepper looked thoughtful, rubbing the bottom of his muzzle, deep in contemplation. He was deeply concerned for Alex; but even more so about this mad scientist. For all he knew, the crazy ape was trying to make those godawful markers somewhere.

Suddenly Alex shot up from the bed, startling everyone. He cringed and held his stomach with his remaining hand. Then he froze and slowly looked up to the people arrayed around him. "Who the fuck are you guys!" He growled.


	21. Chapter 21

Shattered

Chapter XXI

He woke up with a blazing pain in his side. He sat up holding onto his side, it hurt just to breathe. Where was he? Who was he? He looked up, to what must have been the strangest sight in his pitifully short memory. There were animals, bipedal animals! And they were standing around him.

There was an orange male fox, and two vixens, one red and the other...blue? What the hell? Also around him was a toad, some sort of bird, an old dog with two armored companions, a rabbit, an older and younger wolf, and finally some sort of feline and another dog, the last four looked like females but the disorientated man couldn't be sure. Okay what was going on? "Who the fuck are you guys?" He demanded of them, he wanted answered and he would get them!

For some reason they seemed confused, what the heck? He should be the one confused. "Uh...don't you remember us?" The male fox asked, with what looked to be a disturbed expression.

"No!" He grunted angrily before shouting. "I don't even remember my own fucking name!" They froze and looked to each other with distraught faces. He felt kinda bad and so lowered his tone of voice. "Why...should I?"

"Don't you remember me...us?" The blue vixen asked, voice cracking, and gestured to herself and then to the female dog.

For some reason he felt that he should, but he didn't. "I'm sorry...but no." He felt terrible as he said it, but it was the truth.

She visibly deflated and almost collapsed onto the linoleum floor. She was saved by the red colored fox woman and the feline, who held her upright. The little wolf girl was crying and being held by the older one.

"You gotta be fucking kidding me!" The avian growled angrily throwing his hands into the air. While they all looked like someone died, he looked down to his own body, it was suddenly wracked with jolting pain.

He groaned and clenched his chest with his remaining hand and snarled in pain, gasping. His heart felt as though it was being throttled. "Uuuaagghhhh!" He roared in pain and fell over out of the bed, and onto the cold tiled ground. The group in front of him froze as he seized on the floor groaning pain.

"Oh gods!" The blue vixen shouted in fear and ran to his side, and tried to hold his quivering form, soon followed by that brown and white female dog. Even in the delirious pain, the man looked to them in wonder. Who had he been to these two, to make them worry so? The pain became so intense that he jarred to a stop and blacked out.

As soon as Alex stopped shaking, Krystal began to cry over him. This was not what she was expecting, amnesia and sickness, it was terrible! Would he ever be the same again? "Its worse then I had feared." Peppy said sadly as he looked at the once strong human. The one who had seemed invincible, coming out on top of everything he had faced.

"Will he ever be the same?" Miyu asked, her eyes watery. (Penelope was still crying, holding onto her sister like a drowning man to a raft. Falco and Fox stood, with dark frowns on their faces. Slippy was speechless, staring at the amnesiac human on the floor. Pepper, had a tired expression, he had seen too much of this before. His two guards were slumped, but still standing. These had been the two to first speak with Alex before he joined Starfox, all that time, long ago. They had been elated to see him again, but they were not elated with what they had found.)

"I don't know...I just don't know." Peppy replied. They all sat in silence, having no idea what to do now.

The man awoke again, he had no idea how long he had slept, or even where he was. But he did know that his dreams where filled with those two animal girls, that vixen and that dog. They floated around in his mind, frustrating him when he couldn't place who they were. Once more he wracked his brain, desperately trying to recall who he was, who he had been. But for all his efforts, he did not find an answer.

He sat up (someone had kindly placed him back on the cot and draped a blanket over his body), and looked around. He thought he was alone until he heard a voice to his left. "Your awake." It sounded...downtrodden, that was the best way to describe it. He turned to see the blue vixen from before and the collie woman was sleeping in a chair. Her chocolate furred head in the other ones lap, with the vixen stroking it soothingly.

"Yes I am." He replied neither friendly nor hostile. He then stared at her, her forlorn muzzle tickling something in his mind. "I-I uh..." He struggled to say what he was thinking, distracted by her features. All of a sudden he felt a searing pain in his head, causing him to groan and hold it. With the pain came a thought, a brief flashing image that burned into his mind. The blue vixen, she was Krystal! "...Krystal?" He whispered quietly.

The cerulean vixen had locked up when he started to have an episode, not knowing what to do. She was worried that if she tried to comfort him, he would lash out. Krystal didn't know this version of Alex, not what he was capable of. But, before she could decide on a course of action, her ears twitched, she had head him say her name. In excitement she leaned forward "yes?"

With the migraine dissipating his head cleared, he looked up to her. "Your Krystal, that's your name!" He exclaimed happily, having remembered something of his past.

"Yes! Yes I am!" She squeaked elatedly. "Do you remember her?" The now identified Krystal asked anxiously, motioning to the sleeping collie.

His smile vanished quickly replaced by painful disappointment. "No...no I don't." He whispered, drooping his head, a single tear rolling down his face. He turned back to look into Krystal's emerald eyes with a ravenous hunger for knowledge. "Who was I to you?" His voice was laced with desperation as he mined for any information that could spark something else in him. "Who am I?"

She began to look thoughtful, taking a few minutes to try and answer. Krystal couldn't think of any easy way to explain it. But then inspiration struck! The necklace! Hurriedly she detached it and held it out to him, as it dangled in her grip, glinting in the light of the hospital reflecting off the jewelry, she hoped, beyond hope, that it would do something.

Quizzically, he reached for her paw, when his hand connected with her paw, he felt a jolt. As if that signified something meaningful that he could not grasp. Now wary, he grabbed the necklace and twisted it over, spying an inscription on it. "Alexander..." He mumbled softly, tracing the thumb from his only remaining hand over the etched lettering. "Is that me?" He asked, turning to her for confirmation, eyes shining with hope.

"Yes." She answered softly, for the first time since this all happened, she smiled, canines flashing as her muzzle spread wide.

"Alexander...Alexander...Alexander." He whispered the title to himself, trying to get a feel for what must be his name. At long last, he knew his name, it made him joyous beyond belief. He had a name! With a name came a life...with a name came purpose...with a name came hope! Things he thought he would never have thought to have again. But now, there was a chance he could regain it all. "I...I am...ALEXANDER!" He exclaimed loudly and exuberantly, waking the slumbering collie, making her shoot up, and alerting everyone outside his room.

Fox was the first one in, and when he saw the human up had a hopeful expression on his face. "...Alex?" He asked hesitantly. The others waited on their claw tips for his response.

The man turned to him slowly. "That's my name!" He said proudly. "I have a name!" His voice was innocent in its giddy wonder, as if he had just discovered the meaning of life.

"So you remember us all now?" Fox asked anxiously.

"Well no, but at least I have my name." Alex said rather sullenly and defensively, upset that these people didn't appreciate the greatness of that personal achievement.

"That's great!" Krystal said encouragingly, giving Fox and the others a dirty look, telling them with it to take it easy. She didn't want anything to hamper or stall his recovery.

He looked back down to the necklace and handed it back to Krystal slowly. "Here this is yours...Krystal." He said pleasantly, savoring the sound of her name on his lips. The necklace gave him a small idea of what she meant to his old self. And, of what the other woman meant, he a

looked to the collie that had a depressed expression, plastered on her muzzle that had aligned itself with the floor. She must have been feeling a little left out of everything. "And you're Fay right?" He asked gently, making her head look upwards at the sound of him addressing her specifically.

"Y-yeah." She stuttered, unsure of what it was leading to.

"Its nice to see you...again, even if I don't remember." He said with a playful smile. Even if he didn't recall her, he could still be nice. She smiled widely at that, making him grin mirthfully. He didn't want her to look sad. He felt compelled to make her happy, even though he was not sure what she was to him. It was an odd, yet warm feeling, one he liked.

He turned to the others apologetically. "I'm afraid that you all still remain a mystery to me. No matter how much I wished it wasn't so."

They all looked somewhat disgruntled at that. But the Fox guy grinned through the pain. "Well in any case, its good to see that your remembering something!" He forced a cheerful tone out of his mouth. Alex... (ah, to have a name again! It was a good feeling. ) knew that the vulpine was dissatisfied, but couldn't fake memories, and act like he did remember them. Still even though he knew that, he was upset. All these holes in his mind, like Swiss cheese, angered him. And if he though too hard on it, he began to feel disturbed, as if something else occupied those parts of his mind. It was not...nice. He avoided those parts for now, sometime later he would try to access them.

Suddenly, he found himself exhausted, falling back to the bed. Whatever prevented his suffering had dissipated, rekindling the fires of pain. With a groan he hit the soft bedding. It became too much for him to bear. His chest began to feel restricted, his right shoulder was sore, and his legs held a deep resonating ache. "I fear I am...not so good right now." He mumbled, his voice was strained.

"It's alright, you just rest now." Krystal said soothingly, beginning to softly rub his uninjured cheek with a furred paw. She began to hum a beautiful tune, lulling him into a deep slumber. Soon the man fell asleep, with a smile on his face.

Krystal sighed and leaned back, sure it wasn't how she wanted it, but at least some headway had been made. She felt better then earlier. Alex had recalled her name, that was good. Perhaps, with luck, he would recover swiftly.

"Well...I guess that is better then nothing." Fox said, eyeing the sleeping human.

"Maybe he'll be back to normal by tomorrow!" Slippy exclaimed hopefully, looking to his friends.

"I pray it is so Slippy." Peppy exhaled quietly, patting the amphibian on the shoulder.

"Big brother is going to get better?" Penelope asked tearfully. It was hard for her to understand amnesia, but she tried valiantly to.

"Yep, he will be back to cracking jokes and making food in no time!" Falco stated confidently, trying to cheer up the little ebony ball of fur. Lupa gave him a grateful smile, which he shrugged at, acting like his usual tough self.

Miyu didn't say anything, but she was concerned that it would not be that easy, for some reason they had seemed to forget his condition. Not only was he dying, but she saw that he was not wearing his amulet. It would only be a matter of time until his dementia reared its ugly head. And when it did occur, it would not be pleasant for any party involved.

Fara on the over hand was surprisingly optimistic. She thought that he would make a full recovery by the week's end. Surely, all his efforts and kindness would be rewarded by the deities overhead. They would help him and the others through this most difficult time.

Pepper pulled Fox to the side, he also had not forgotten about Alex's condition. "What are your plans in case he loses it?" The hound asked, not attempting to be gentle about it. He was concerned about the the chance of it occurring.

"I...hadn't thought about it." Fox replied uncertainly. The vulpine had not considered that yet, nor did he want to.

"You should Fox, just incase." Pepper warned and turned to leave. "It never hurts to be prepared."


	22. Chapter 22

Shattered

Chapter XXII

Alex woke up feeling ill and disorientated, it was becoming a regular occurrence for the unfortunate amnesiac. Still groggy, he swept his eyes around his surroundings, it appeared he was still in the same hospital bed, although he was alone in the room this time and from the looks outside the dark window, it was late in the night. For a few minutes he sat in silence, not thinking about his problems, just sitting in the barely lit room. Yet, the itch to rediscover himself became too much, so he closed his eyes and tried to remember.

It took half an hour before he started to feel anything change. He was getting a flashback of...something, vague notions of who these strange animal people were, and flittering images, he tried harder to recall it all until he heard a voice, that let the images slip through his grasp and back into the void. "Hey brother how's it going?"

He opened his eyes to see another person standing beside his bed, a human like him, smiling widely. "Who the hell are you?" Alex demanded harshly, enraged that the man had stopped him on the brink of remembrance.

"How could you not remember an old friend?" The man asked with a hurt look on his face. "Its me, Santiago!"

"Santiago?" Alex muttered warily, he had not seen the man enter and had immediately become suspicious of his arrival.

"Yeah Santiago, you have to remember me! We fought together man, bled together!" The man prompted helpfully, although with some force.

"No sorry I can't remember, apparently I have amnesia, if you haven't noticed." He fired back caustically. This man pressed all the wrong buttons for some reason, something was...off about him.

"That really is unfortunate." This "Santiago" sighed. "I was hoping you would remember me. I just had to warn you."

"Warn me? About what?" Alex demanded, suspicious golden eyes glaring at the strange man that had come out of the blue and barraged him with words.

Santiago turned around briefly to stare at the whitewashed wall to the left of the bed, letting an unseen malevolent grin manifest on his face. "I wanted to make sure that even in your forgetful state, you were warned."

"About what?!" Alex shouted angrily, starting to lose his patience with this visitor.

"Oh, just that you can't trust these animals." Santiago replied offhandedly, turning back around to give him a serious look. "They are lying to you!"

"How?" Alex asked, not wanting to believe this guy, yet developing a little doubt in his damaged mind.

"They aren't telling you everything." Santiago whispered softly, that some how having a bigger effect than if he had shouted. "They have secrets, plans, for you! They can't be trusted!"

"Oh, but you can?" Alex muttered derisively, unamused with this man's attempts to sway him. "Frankly, I trust them more then some random man who says he's from my past,at least a few of them I somewhat remember!"

"You say that now, but I think your opinion will change." Santiago said confidently, as if Alex was a child that firmly believed in a lie, and will soon realize the error of his ways.

"Sure." Alex grunted and turned away to face the window, dismissing the stranger from his mind. He had nothing but ill things to say and honeyed words. Even without his memory, he knew a rat when he saw one. Still, no matter how confident he was, a sliver of doubt remained, festering in his mind. Perhaps he was right, and he was trying to warn him.

"Santiago" snarled at his failed attempt to crack the one who could make more of the markers. Dropping the disguise, it slunk back into the man's mind, like a snake back into its den, its ruse failed. No matter, it would try again another day, waiting patiently, it would have the chance to make its move. The signal always won in the end, only time could tell, and this time would not be any different.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Fay was out in the hallway, she had just finished up her late night meal, it had been bland and flavorless. She wasn't so sure it was just because it was hospital food. Fay thought back to the last few hours, and how frustrating and depressing they've been. The team had all left Alex's room after he fell asleep and went down to the cafeteria.

Since then they've just been sitting around, trying to figure out what to do and helping her and Krystal cope with this stressful development. It had been hell for the two females for the past week-and-a-half, from thinking he was dead to stumbling upon the shattered man himself. Yet the ever hopeful collie refused to let herself fall into despair, Alex would get better, she was sure of it! It was the only way she could still think about it. The best thing to do now would be to check up on him she decided firmly, picking up her pace to reach his room.

As she neared the room she heard a brief but heated argument coming from behind the closed door, but the strangest thing was she could only make out Alex's voice doing all the shouting. He sounded angry and annoyed. Concerned, she rushed to the room, thinking he was in trouble. As she got closer to the entrance, the argument stopped and it went silent. She opened the door hesitantly and walked in.

No one but Alex was in the room, and he was laying on his side facing the paned night skyline of the cornerian capital. Fay padded over to his bedside, boots tapping quietly on the continuously polished floor till she softly set herself down at the edge of his bed. She wanted to ask him about the disturbance, but decided it would be better just to sit with him and let him open up to her.

They both sat and laid there respectively, until he finally spoke up, fifteen minutes later. "The night sky." He mumbled vaguely, and almost offhandedly. She hummed, questioningly, making him speak again. "It's quite beautiful, the bright lights sparkling in the darkness with such beauty, like fireflies, and yet ever fearful that the power will go out, smothering them in darkness." Alex replied softly, not really talking to her, or even himself for the matter.

"Kinda've like my mind, I lay here, in terror, that the pitifully minuscule memories I have managed to painstakingly tear out will seep back into the depthless insanity of my amnesia riddled brain, like water over splayed fingers." He whispered the last part softly, as he brought his calloused hands into the dim light of the window, staring at them intently.

Fay continued to be silent, but watched him with sympathetic eyes. She felt for him, and more then that, she cared for him. Still, she waited for him to say more, to break out of this introspective cage that had been beaten, smashed and slashed into him by the demented ape scientist, and perhaps recover some more of his memories. When they find Liedman, nothing would protect him from her rage.

As she studied Alex's tortured expression she couldn't help but climb into the bed and snuggle up to him, wrapping her warm fuzzy arms and body around his chest, squeezing him comfortingly, trying her best to do what she could for him now. He was shivering and his body was clammy, even under the mound of blankets, but when she went under the covers and hugged him to her chest, it stopped.

He didn't reject her closeness, rather he embraced it, and her, hugging the collie back fiercely, as if she was his lifeline to his return to normalcy, and in point of fact, she was. "And though there will always be darkness, at least for now there is light." He whispered that last line, and turned to face Fay, staring into her dazzling sapphire eyes. His golden orbs crying out for help. Fay couldn't help herself, she linked her pure white paws around the back of his head and brought him into a deep kiss, mashing her muzzle into his mouth, almost with desperation, her long canind tongue stroked the inside of his mouth gently, soothingly. They laid like that, lips locked-together for a long time. It was her first real kiss with him, and she loved it.

After awhile, she reluctantly broke away from the intimate gesture, somewhat breathless, panting softly. Alex looked to her with a thoughtful expression, "hmm...so that's who I was to you."

"You were, and are, more then that, so much more." She replied, her usually boisterous and bright voice subdued, speaking for the first time since she entered the room, and hugging him even tighter. "And you always will be."

Alex pondered at that. She was clearly being serious, he was something very important to this woman and no doubt the other. So then why was this Santiago fellow trying to make him not trust them? Something was very bad about that man, maybe she would know more? "Uh...Fay..." He asked with a halting tone, making sure he said her name right.

"Yes Alex?" She replied, her muzzle lodged comfortably under his chin and over his broad shoulder. She was laying down and enjoying the snuggling, and was surprised to hear him talk to her directly and with a point.

"Do you know of a man named Santiago? He was here a little while ago and talked with me. I didn't and I particularly enjoy what he had to say." He felt her stiffen up under him, and began to feel a little nervous that what he said upset her. And a small part of himself began to whisper, reminding him of the man's words. Alex brutally stomped it down into the proverbial dust. He would not let the voices in his head drive his actions and thoughts.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Meanwhile, Fay was panicking internally, If she remembered correctly, Santiago was one of Alex's friends, and he died a long time ago. That was not a good thing, it meant that his dementia was coming back, they would have to take care of it, and soon.

But the most vital decision right now was wether to let him know, or keep it a secret. If they kept it a secret, then he would almost certainly be furious if and when he uncovered the deception. On the other hand, if he was told, there was no guarantee he would believe them or if he would begin to distrust them. It was a hard decision, one she wish she didn't have to make. But considering he asked now and she couldn't just leave or brush it off, she would have to. So Fay steeled herself and made her choice.

"Alex, when you still had your memory, you told us that he died along time ago, along with the rest of your species, humanity." She winced, waiting for the fallout that would he sure to come from such a bombshell of a revelation. What happened instead was a relieving announcement, that was a solid five minutes in he making.

"I...believe you." Alex said slowly. He had come to a decision to trust these people over the mysterious new man. It also made some sense considering he had apparently materialized from no where, just because he did not remember everything did not mean he was an idiot, but that did shed light on another more worrisome problem. He was talking to things in his head and the apparition of a deceased man. He was not only an amnesic, but he was an insane one. To compile it even more, he was apparently the last of his kind. All that was allot to digest at the moment and threatened to overwhelm his scattered and befuddled mind.

Fay, with her animalistic intuition, could detect Alex's troubled disposition. In response she hugged him tighter, using her whole body. He could feel the pricking claws of her paws and hindpaws as they encircled him. "Its great that you believe me, and your not crazy, I know it!" She yipped and nuzzled deeper into his muscled chest.

Alex chuckled softly at the way she phrased it, those encouraging words and her passionate embrace, it allowed him settle down. He was feeling tired again, and he knew it was happing way too often to be a natural phenomenon. It felt like his soul was slowly leaking out of his body, and it was killing him. He didn't want to worry Fay so he pushed it away and focused on her, when he did the feeling of death receded, allowing him to relax comfortably. They soon drifted off to sleep like this, both delighted by each other's contact and company. The lonely night was not so much so anymore for the human.


	23. Chapter 23

Shattered

Chapter XXIII

Alex was in a dark room, laying upon the grate like flooring, not a single light was to be seen. Seriously confused, he tried to get up, having a difficult time managing it with only a single arm. Yet after some determined grunts he managed to get on his feet. As he tried to puzzle out where he was, he stumbled around the dark room, looking for a light switch or door, anything that could alleviate the crushing darkness surrounding him. After a few minutes of fumbling around with his arm, he sighed in defeat, falling to his knees in despair, the blackness was choking, making him gasp for air.

That is when things went from bad to worse. The once hidden walls showed themselves, red runes seeming to be scratched into them before the concerned human's eyes and began to glow brightly. But it was not a friendly glow, it held a sickly aura and seemed to promise nothing but madness. That was not all, the lettering itself sparked something in his damaged head, something that he did not like in the least. Alex felt as if a greasy and oil blanket was slowly ensnaring his brain and constricting, blotting out lucid thought and reason. He knew, somehow, that it was responsible due to the festering crimson scribbles that were carved around him.

He tried his best to tear his eyes away from them and try to win back his hard fought self and the measly memories he tore from his clouded mind. But it was inevitably futile, it was an affliction of the soul, and could not be so easily beaten. For every second he stared into the archaic blood red runes, he felt things begin to slip away, NO! He would not let himself go again!

With one last desperation filled roar, he wrenched himself onto the floor and huddled up into a ball. There he began to cry, alone and afraid, his only companions being the sultry whispering voices in his mind, softly pleading him to look back upon the wondrous gift they wished to bestow upon him. As he continued his obstinate refusal, the voices slowly shifted from friendly and welcoming to violent and coarse, that's when he felt something grab him and toss his battered body into the air. The force was so great he slammed into the ceiling, and heard a sharp snap as something gave in his chest.

He fell to the floor with a whimpering moan, he had felt his left leg give away, and he could see bone protruding from his mangled calf. The mauled human looked to see what was tormenting him and saw the most frighting and beastly creature his amnesiac mind had ever laid eyes on.

It must have once been a human, but now it was some twisted atrophied carcass given a sick version of new life. Its guts were open to the air, seemingly held in by some unknown force, and it had some tannish bone like protrusions out of its shoulders that looked more like spears then anything else. Its face was a decayed wreck, the lower jaw was hanging off a single strand of rotten sinew and it had more saber-like teeth then a shark. The monster was far larger then a normal human being, standing at roughly seven feet. But, for some reason, even with all the decay and mutation warping its visage, Alex felt as of he knew the thing. As he gazed upon its putrid countenance, he noted that its bloated eyes held a spark of intelligence in them. This was no simple beast...but something more.

"We meet again Alex." The creature spoke, it's lower jaw flapped uselessly up and down as it did, the whole act was pointless considering the noise did not emanate from the polluted corpses voice box, but rather through the very air itself. The buzzing resonance of its speech smothering his wit.

"Who...what..are you?" Alex demanded in-between broken sobs as he clutched his broken limb. The bone was stained red, Jutting from the splintered leg.

"Don't you remember me? We just spoke earlier." It hissed mockingly, a strange concept for a terrifying monster. "It's me, Santiago."

Alex unconsciously shook his head in denial, something the creature noticed. "Oh but yes!" It snarled, stepping closer with its mangled legs, dragging the left uselessly along. "If only you could remember, you would know that you abandoned your species to die! This is what I am now Alex, this is what you made all of us!" It howled, smashing Alex to the floor with a talon. The blow sliced his chest open vertically, soon which flowed a crimson river.

Alex was frozen, he couldn't get himself to move no matter how hard he tried. He just laid there as the creature approached, the only sound in the room was the incessant whispering and the wet drawl of the monsters damning tread. "You will make wonders for us Alex, the means of our ascension!" It raved, stabbing a blade into his shoulder, and forcing him to the floor. The pain was excruciating, compounding in his numerous wounds and making cry out in agony. Then, it began to drag him to a cavernous opening that materialized out of nowhere. "The darkness will break you, and we will mold what remains." It growled softly, pulling him into the darkness with a steady unforgiving pace. Alex clawed at the floor with his only hand, and cried out to the unforgiving oppressing air. He tried to escape, tearing a massive gouge in his pierced shoulder and ripping the fingernails from his hand. It was not enough, as the creature inexhaustibly lead him to his doom.

-

Fay woke up and climbed out of Alex's bed. She saw that he was slumbering peacefully and so thought she could sneak out for a few minutes and grab some breakfast, or perhaps coffee. She strolled slowly down to the cafeteria, feeling better then ever. Alex was sure to be back to normal in no time. Last night had been wonderful, he had shown that he cared for her, even in his fractured state. It was a relieving thing to know, it had been a fear of hers since it was discovered that he had forgotten everything. But it seemed he still clung to his little remembered thoughts, something she doubted she could have done in his position.

Fay found herself humming a gentle tune as she opened the double doors to the cafeteria and sauntered inside. She looked at her friends and couldn't help but giggle.

Fox was snoring abominably loud, his legs inside the bench of the table, but his body was on the floor, his head repurposing his fluffy tail as a pillow. Falco was leaning on Peppy, both having fallen asleep sitting down. Slippy's head was in Miyu's lap, and he snored softly. Miyu was face-planted to the metal table, a small puddle of drool surrounded her open muzzle. Krystal was sitting sedately, her head in her paws as she slept, muzzle held up high.

Fara was conked out, Penelope curled up in her lap. Lupa was sitting across her, the wolf had her arms crossed and was laying her muzzle on them, her errant pink tongue sticking out the side.

Fay smiled as she scooted past them to the small expresso machine at the edge of the table area. It was good to see them all together, it showed the collie how much they cared for Alex. If there was anyone in Lylat who could help him it was they. She grabbed one of the cheap white cups in one of her her brown paws and brought it under the nozzle, a few presses of a button later and the frothy pungent aroma of fresh coffee drizzled into the air, revitalizing the canine. As she waited for the dispenser to finish, she looked back to her friends.

The twitching of Fox's little wet black nose signaled the awakening of the vulpine. Fay, in all her time with him, never once seen him miss out on his morning coffee. His emerald green eyes shot open and he lunged forward towards the direction of the life giving fragrance. What he didn't realize was that his legs were still under the table, all he accomplished was a halted leap and a bruised muzzle. "Ow." He groaned, his face still in the ground. He heard Fay chuckling from the are of the coffee machine and lurched his body to face it. "Sup Fay." He greeted from his grounded location casually, leaning a paw on his head for support.

"Hey Fox." She replied, still chuckling at the unfortunate orange furred vulpine. He was a funny fox to be around, that's for sure. The machine beeped signaling the completion of the brewing and serving process. Fay pulled the cup from under the dispensary and brought the styrofoam container to her fuzzy lips. She took a sip of the dark brown substance and sighed loudly in satisfaction as it pattered down her throat, purposely teasing her friend. The food here may be terrible but the coffee was great!

Fox became jealous and leaped into the air with surprising agility. He landed on his hindpaws and quickly scurried over to the machine. In seconds he had a cup under the hose, a stream of liquid tinkling into the foam receptacle. His father, James, had instilled in him the terrible curse of the coffee drinker. While his father was alive, he had hated coffee, claiming he would never drink it willingly.

James, had only ever responded one way, he would chuckle and say in his strong but gentle voice, "some day son, you will change, you will turn into the man a see growing inside of you, and liking coffee is the first step." He added jokingly, ruffling the younger Fox's head. "And when that day comes, I hope I will be there to see it."

But he never did, he had been betrayed and murdered by his friend, Pigma. One day, years after his father passed away, Fox nabbed a cup of coffee on his way to the academy, it was a spur of the moment kind of thing. As he walked out of the shop and took a sip, he was punched in the gut by that vivid memory of all those years ago. Now, he always drank coffee, and every sip reminded him of his father. It had become a ever present commitment to himself, a way of making sure he never forgot.

Fay watched as Fox became withdrawn, listlessly swirling the bitter liquid in its container gazing into its brewed depths intently. No doubt he was thinking about some thing, long in the past. As she stood next to her friend, she cradled the foam cup in her cold paws, the room they were in was not that well regulated for heat. Either that of hospitals were naturally kept to a cold temperature. They stood side-by-side in silence, until the other members of the team began to stir.

The first one to completely regain their faculties was Peppy, the old hare far more experienced with the matter of sleeping.'he turned to his left and saw the dozing Falco, snerking obnoxiously in his sleep. With a chuckle he sat up, letting the snoring avian fall unceremoniously to the bench, smacking his beak upon the steel. Now awake, Falco bolted up to glare at the mischievous hare, rubbing his beak sullenly. "What the hell was that for?" He muttered.

"Was what for? I simply stood up." Peppy replied innocently. "Really Falco, I think you need to be careful of where you decide to lay your head." The hare retorted, walking over to the duo by the machine.

Falco grumbled to himself and caught up with Peppy. "Whatever, I got my eye on you old-timer!" He warned, not quite believing that the recent event had been a harmless accident.

"I had no idea you felt that way." Peppy said with a mock stage gasp. He felt like being a little playful today to balance out the stress of the past, and Falco was giving him the perfect opportunity to do so.

"Wha-what! Not like that!" The now red faced avian stuttered, caught surprise by the antics of the aged hare. Peppy was the last one he pegged for a dastardly wit.

By now, Fox and Fay were laughing uncontrollably, finding relief in the bickering of the two. Peppy smiled, content that his plan had worked. Falco was not so happy, looking at the three with barely veiled annoyance. "Yeah yeah, laugh at the bird, that's all your good for anyways. Lord knows you guys can't fly without me." He muttered, crossing his feathered arms and sulking.

The laughter had awoken the others who groggily made there way to the assembled group. "What's...so funny?" Miyu demanded with a yawn, waving a brown spotted paw in front of her muzzle tiredly. Trailing behind her was Fara, holding a half awake pup in her russet arms, and Lupa, who was following after them.

"Just discovering Falco's dark secret." Fox answered with a smirk, looking to his increasingly flustered friend.

"Oh really? Do tell." Miyu meowed, grinning evilly, excited at the chance for potential ammunition against the annoying bird.

"Nope, none of that!" Falco shouted, leaping between the new arrivals, not willing to let this embarrassment continue. The outburst somewhat awakening the still disorientated team.

"All right guys let off." Slippy said rubbing one of his eyes with his webbed hands, being the nice guy he always was he wanted to give Falco a break. The poor avian could dish it out, but not take it.

"If you say so." Fay replied, before noticing that Krystal had not said anything yet, deciding to remain silent and to the side while the others jokes around, she went over to the mute vixen. "Everything okay?" She inquired, laying a paw on Krystal's.

"I can't seem to laugh, I know I should, but I can't." Krystal replied, a little hysterical. "How can they joke when he lies down the hall, clinging to his sanity?" She suddenly demanded heatedly, her clawed paws flexing with frustration.

"Because that's how they cope." Fay replied gently, calming the vixen's trembling paws with her own. "You can't allow yourself to fall into despair."

"I...I know." Krystal sighed heavily. "It's just that, it's hard to swallow, this all seems like too much, how much more must Alex and us suffer before we can go back to normal?"

"Krystal, nothing has been normal since I've came back to you guys, and I don't think it was when he first arrived either. I don't think anything will ever be normal as long as he is around, not that I'm saying its a bad thing." Fay said with a wry grin.

Krystal turned to her friend and smiled back, displaying more confidence then she had. "You're right Fay, you're always right."

"Now you understand!" The collie said pseudo haughtily, making her friend chuckle. "See, you can laugh!" She jested, poking Krystal in her blue furred chest. "Now let's go with the others, I'm sure you want to see Alex as much as anyone one of us, if not more so." The now considerably better vixen walked with her friend back to the team.

Fox turned from Peppy and spotted them. "Hey you two, how are you holding up?" His eyes showed their concern, but he kept it lite for everyone else. The others saw her and Fay, and have her the best attitude they could manage.

"Hanging in there." Krystal answered, flashing them a brief thankful smile. She appreciated it all, truly they were her family, through thick and thin they always pulled out the stops for each other.

"I'm sure he will be back to normal in no time!" Fara said with a confidence that was good to hear. The fennec vixen still honestly believe that with all her heart. Penelope just laid in Fara's arms, watching the adults with a studious gaze.

"Fara's right, it will all work out in the end, you just have to have faith." Lupa supported from her place next to the dark red vixen. It seems they had become friends.

A few minutes of pleasant conversation was interrupted when they heard shouting coming from the hallway. Curious they moved to the doors and opened them, just in time to watch a crash cart go flying by down the hall. Two stone faced feline doctors, (a orange tabby and brown calico), and a kangaroo nurse were guiding the metal trolly down to the end of the way and came to a stop outside Alex's room. They were talking rapidly as they opened the door.

Deeply concerned, the team ran over and fox grabbed the kangaroo nurse before she could enter. "What's going on?" The vulpine demanded.

She looked worried as she answered, repeatedly glancing back to the developing commotion inside. "The monitors in his room have gone haywire, he's going into cardia arrest...his heart is falling." She added softly, "I don't think they can save him."

"W-why?" Krystal stuttered in shock. Fay could hardly believe it, last night and this morning he had been doing fine, for someone with amnesia anyways.

"We don't know, it just started minutes ago, we are just the response team." The female kangaroo replied, before entering the room, in a rush to do what she could.

Wasting no time, the team followed after her. What they saw was not a pretty sight. The two feline male doctors were desperately trying to hold down the thrashing human, even with a missing arm he was proving a difficult patient to restrain. He was tossing erratically and letting out noises more akin to a wounded beast then a man. This was no thing for a child to see, Lupa quickly picked up Penelope and dashed out of the room. As much as she wanted to be there, it was better that she stayed with her baby sister.

Seeing that the doctors were ineffective a keeping the spastic human down, Falco and Fox rushed over and helped them. With the two strong supporting paws, they finally managed to get him somewhat under control. "What is causing this?" Fox grunted, using is immense strength to keep his friend from hurting himself or anyone else.

"I don't know." The orange feline replied as he held Alex's left leg, "it has to be something with his mind, some sort of trauma hat just surfaced now." The cat sighed, "if my hypothesis is correct, then we can't do anything for him. We have no idea what our methods would do to one of his species, not to mention he is the only one ever seen." A particular crazy bout had almost loosed his leg but the feline clamber down. "I suppose if we had to we could use some simian treatments but I don't think they are closely related enough to succeed."

"Is there any plan at all?" Falco growled, he was pissed that all these doctors couldn't fox the problem. If they couldn't, what were they good for?

"I'm sorry...but no, we may just have to let him go." The hazel cat added from his place at Alex's left armed stump.

"Unacceptable!" Krystal shouted, running over to the doctors.

"There's nothing we can do!" The tabby exclaimed angrily. He wasn't heartless, he just felt that he was out of options.

Krystal looked defeated before her muzzle lit up with an idea. "Maybe not, but I can!" She exclaimed loudly.

"Excuse me?" Kangaroo said in surprise, she had been preparing the shock cart when the vixen had startled the experienced nurse.

"I am a telepath, its so simple I wonder why I haven't thought of it till now! I can help him!" She said, looking to Fox pleadingly for support.

Fox took only a second to mull it over. "You think you can help him?"

Krystal nodded impatiently. "Yes!"

"Then do it, but be careful I don't want to lose two of you." He said reluctantly, but trusting that she spoke the truth.

Krystal didn't waste time responding, she just wrapped her cerulean paws around Alex's sweaty and cold head, and closed her eyes in concentration. Within moment the turbulent human had settled down, the doctors, Fox, and Falco no longer having to hold him. "Krystal?" Fox said after a few minutes of silence. But she didn't answer, her mind was already communed with Alex.

-

Where ever she found herself, it was dark and damp. The air was chilly and not a sound could be heard beside her own loud breathing. Shivering, her fur and clothes seemingly nonexistent in this frigid expanse, Krystal searched for Alex's manifestation of his consciousness. Krystal had only joined with a few minds, and that had been when her homeworld still thrived. And in those few times, she had never been in a place like this.

She wandered aimlessly through the darkness, the floor under he felt spongy and wet. She couldn't see it, and she didn't want to. Soon a dim red light began to gleam softly in the direction she was going. As she got closer the light started to make shapes and forms out of the darkness, Krystal was in some sort of corridor, tot which the entirety was consumed in a fleshy growth that looked allot like...you now what? She didn't want to compare it to anything. Shuddering, she trudged through the squelching mire of biological tumorous matter that blanketed everything in eyesight and finally escaped the corridor of disgust. Upon her break out, she unwittingly discovered the source of the malevolent light.

Krystal was in a room that triggered every repulsive and frightened instinct in her animalistic repertoire. The whole place just screamed wrong. The room was so dark that she couldn't even tell were the walls or ceiling were, the light was a neon crimson scrawling script that zigzagged across the walls with a pointless insanity, there was no reason or pattern to it. In fact looking at I only made the vixen's head hurt.

She turned away, but she did note that it felt like peeling a off a bandage, it was not a nice feeling. Now even more uneasy she walked into the gaping hole on the opposite side of the room. She began to jog, needing to find Alex somewhere in his own mind. Krystal was scared, what was this, this darkness that seemed to prevail a hopeless feeling of despair, all encompassing in its dark majesty? How could it relate to Alex? Then, she landed on the answer to her questions, this was not his mind, or at least what it normally was. No doubt the evil she sensed here was the insanity he had warned them about. How could it affect someone so? Now full on sprinting, she began to feel hysteria building up, but for the life of her, could not discover where it was coming from. She forcibly made herself relax, it was this place, just being here messed with one's mind, she had to get to Alex and save him.

She ran, now at a significantly calmed pace, until she found the end of this particular corridor, that was also bathed in the cancerous flesh growth. When she reached the end, her vulpine ears detected the sound of faint screaming. Panicking, she ran to the end of the hallway and turned into the only room connected to it. And what she found...made the vixen echo that suffering howling.


	24. Chapter 24

Shattered

Chapter XXIV

The thing impaling him dragged the obstinate human all the way to some godforsaken room. There, it roughly slammed him onto a rusty table, which the course grainy texture rubbed painfully against his back inflaming the tender flesh "step one, remembrance!" The monster intoned, bringing its smaller vestigial arms to Alex's cranium. "You once had the understanding in your mind, and I will draw it back out." It growled to him in its buzzing guttural voice. Why it wanted to talk, Alex did not know. He still had no fucking clue why he was where he was. Last thing he remembered was falling asleep, pleasantly he might add, alongside the warm fuzzy collie woman, Fay. Next thing he knew he was in some twisted hellish place with this monstrous asshole.

Alex struggled against the flimsy biological restraints attached to his head, but was so weak he could not tear himself free. "LET. ME. GO!" He snarled  
>steadily and desperately, trying to get away.<p>

The thing did not appreciate his efforts and smashed his face with one of its shoulder spear things and roared. "SILENCE!" Then it raised the struggling human's head to look into its eyes. He gazed into the corrupted orbs and saw inside, a red and black pulsing obelisk, replacing its pupils. He wanted to look away but it forced his eyes open and kept his head unflinchingly on its hypnotic gaze.

Soon he was sucked into its depths, and once inside, began to remember. But the process would he interrupted, promising salvation and his memories, all due to a brave soul that ventured in after her loved one.

-

Krystal beheld a terrible sight, Alex, her love and hero, lay upon a bloody rusty slab of steel. He was battered and broken, having been so by his captor. The captor was some horrifying corpse like creature, one these necropmorphs that's she had seen before. It was circling the restrained human and snarling something she could not understand, as it closed in and grabbed his head with its disgusting little arm things, no doubt to inflict some tremendously horrible wound upon her beloved, the usually innocent harmless and kind vixen became a blazing outlet of all her repressed fear, rage, sorrow, and anguish. This monster and whatever else had decided to screw with Alex would pay...dearly.

She though of her staff and brought it to herself, imagining it here with her. She elongated the deadly Cerinina weapon and swung the crystal topped amethyst, cerulean and gold gilded pole in the direction of the necromorph. From the jewel atop it, a flaming sphere shot out and impacted against the turned back of the beast. The orb hit, smashing it away from Alex. The flames spread across its body, the fire bitting deep into necrotic tissue. It let out an unearthly squeal and fell to the mushy ground. Soon, the crackling flames began to spread, eagerly consuming the growth covering the floor.

With the threat neutralized, Krystal ran in, dodging the dying flames and went to the side of the nearly delirious Alex. He was laying still laying, unmoving, upon rusted nightmarish gurney. "ALEX!" She shouted, shaking him with her paws, trying to make him lucid. Within seconds, he began to stir, awoken by the sound if her voice. "K-Krystal?" He mumbled, his golden eyes suddenly flying open. Alex jolted up from the table, sending the vixen stumbling backwards, her balance retained thanks to her tail.

He turned to her, puzzled. "What's going on? Where are we? Where is everyone?" He asked worriedly. He seemed to he entirely lucid, as of all that had happens had never transpired.

"Alex?...you remember me?" She whispered, close to tears.

He stared at her in confusion. "Of course I do, why wouldn't I?" He asked. Sure his mind was still a little fuzzy, but the last thing he remembered was landing outside that research facility disguised under the airfield on venom. Maybe he was still there? But then, why was Krystal here as well? It didn't matter, for now something was wrong whith her and he needed to fix it. "Is something wrong?" He demanded, Krystal had began to quaver and tear up.

The blue and white tattooed vixen flung herself at him, surprising the human. "NO! Something is right!" She churred, enveloping him in a bone powdering embrace.

Alex, spluttering with blue hairs in his mouth tied to restrain her, but could not for the life of him seem to to do it. Trying to figure out why, he looked to his arms, and his unknowingly newly recovered mind drew a blank.

Where the fuck was his left arm?

He cried out in shock and fell backwards to the spongy floor, cartwheeling his stump and normal arm for balance but, ultimately failed. Luckily for him, the fires had died down to soft cracking embers so it did not spread. Krystal peered over the side at him, ears twitching in confusion. "What?" She asked, the vixen was so happy she forgot that he was still, even with his regained memory, unaware of his current location and disfigurement.

"Where...is...my...arm." He started to gasp, slowly, each word antagonizing his hysteria, he was beginning to seriously flip the fuck out. He sat there on his tattered suited ass, and stared at what should be a perfectly functioning and healthy limb. Instead, it was an ugly mass of scar tissue that ended just before the elbow "wha..wha...I...uh." He began to whisper hoarsely, staring at the painfully unsymmetrical comparison of his two arms. "No..." He muttered quietly.

Krystal echoed his sorrow, she dearly wished with all her heart that he still possessed his uninjured limb. She could continue to cry, or she could comfort him. The vixen walked over to the huddled shivering from of her human lover and crouched down. "Shhh." She whispered softly, wrapping his trembling form in her loving furred grip and nuzzling his head affectionately. "It's going to be alright, your back now, and we will get through this together." She sat with him for a long time in the dark mindscape, doing what she could to things first, they had to scalpel this cancerous infection in his brain so that it could not manifest itself again. The problem, she had no idea how to do it.

How would one go about removing a mental illness from ones mind effectively? It had never been some before so she had no preconception to go off. This would have to be a first for them. "Let's go." Krystal commanded softly, helping the traumatized Alex to his feet, taking care not to exasperate the broken leg. If they wanted to do anything they would first have to get moving. She helped him our of the room, stepping over the charred wreckage of the beat that had tried to claim him, and they walked back down the corridor they had both from, but at different times. They did not see the body behind them fade away like dust in breeze.

"So...I take it I have missed out on allot?" Alex inquired as they walked, leaning in each other, while he limped. He was doing his best to remain cheerful and calm, ignoring the fact he was minus one limb. Krystal admired his strength and determination.

"Not really, the team has been waiting for you to get better before we acted in any way." Krystal replied as they exited the first corridor. She was focused on his conversation but she was also basking in the fact that he was back to his old, although battered, self. She was unconsciously rubbing against him, almost as if she lost contact, he would float way never to be seen again.

"I hope I haven't ruined anything." He chuckled, just glad to be with someone he loved. "I would hate to have to deal with Falco's whining."

Krystal giggled and bopped him on the head with her bushy blue and white tipped tail. "Silly human, Falco always whines." The two laughed heartily, the darkness becoming slightly less unbearable. And somewhere outside, in the real world, a certain avian had a bad feeling that people were talking about him...and they weren't praising his awesomeness.

Soon they arrived at the room that Alex awoke in, although neither of them knew that. "I...need...a...little break." He gasped, the many wounds and deep seeded exhaustion finally laying the determined human low. Krystal seceded to his request and loaded him to the floor outside the hallway she had come from her first time around. Then, quite tired herself, Krystal sat down beside him. "You know." He mumbled tiredly, "you are one hell of a woman, covered in fur or not." She was leaning against his shoulder and hummed in response. "I mean, here we are, in this terrible place." He thought it was ironic that this place was of his own design...technically. "And the strongest one here, is you." He finished, leaning his head on hers. "You have been too good to this tired soul. He added, stroking the place in-between her long vixen ears, making her murr in content. They sat there, supporting each other, until he recuperated enough to continue.

She helped him up and they continued their journey, that is until they heard a deafening guttural roar. It was so intense that they lost their balance and fell in a heap, the wounded human crying out in pain. Krystal helped Alex back up and they quickly vied to locate the source. It was Krystal who found it, she felt everything that was wrong in his mind slide into one direction, creating a sickeningly powerful aura that originated from the place they were heading to. It seemed that the evil in his mind was attempting one last blitzkrieg to seize it all back. She could feel the anger brewing inside the entity approaching, it had put far too much effort in its host to let it go without a titanic fight. "Something's coming." Krystal warned him.

"You think?" He deadpanned sarcastically, causing him to receive another tail swipe to the face.

"Ass." She muttered loud enough for him to hear. A thunderous beat of a quadrupedal beast echoed down the fleshy hallway before them, Krystal hurriedly ushered Alex out if the way, but it was too late as the huge beast finally arrived, she had no clue as to what it was, she had never seen its like before in any of his videos or the few times he talked about necromorphs.

Alex was quick to rectify that. "SHIT, BRUTE!" He shouted, throwing the caught of guard vixen away from the charging beast. It bellowed in rage, more deafening then a starship engine and brought a lumbering necrotic fist to slam into the human sending him flying, like a rocket through the air.

Krystal saw him smash into the far wall and fall into a slumped pile of shattered bones. She froze as she stared at the unmoving heap of humanity. Then, she turned to the triumphantly roaring brute, a dark rage pooling inside as she watched the creature gloat over Alex's corpse. With a terrifying snarl she leaped at it, calling upon her staff and slammed it down on its head.

The force of the attack stunned the giant adversary, giving her a chance to stuff the jeweled section of her weapon in its maw, she called on the elements of winter and fired a freezing blast into the abomination. It let out an unearthly howl and flung her away to land in a pile of limbs near the unmoving human's location. The ice attack had greatly wounded, but not killed, the monster. It would take more then that to slay the evil that had been festering in Alex's brain.

Krystal picked herself up off the floor and saw the pained creature stumble drunkenly, trying to right itself. She picked her staff up of the floor a few feet to her left and aimed it at the thing's legs. She fired a small burst of smaller ice shards, watching in satisfaction as they covered her opponent's legs. Krystal ran towards it and swung her staff vertically, fracturing the stumpy legs supporting the large beast. It snarled and tried to hit, only dooming itself as she dodged fluidly, the monster's own momentum breaking the already damaged legs.

Now legless, it fell to the floor and Krystal moved to finish it off, thinking it was down. She misjudged how much fight it had left as it smashed her to the ground, where she felt her chest shift painfully. Mewling in pain, she rolled to the left, avoiding a lethal finishing slam, bursting the fleshy ground around her and denting the metal floor. She crawled to a kneeling position and fired off another burst of ice spikes, these cutting off one of the necromorphs's plagued arms. Now only a torso connected to a head and arm, she wheezed over to the creature. Every breath hurt, she must have damaged a rib. She stopped in front of its head, staring into its many stolen eyes, out of reach of its remaining limb. Both enemies eyed each other, the only common attribute being the undisguised rage in their flaming orbs.

With a howl, Krystal drove her staff into the beast's head, through rotten bone and putrid flesh. Activating the most powerful fire blast she could, the vixen blew the monsters's head and upper body to pieces, showering organic shrapnel to the four winds. With her vile foe defeated, Krystal shrunk to the floor, tired and emotionally drained. She turned to the human, who still had no moved, and crawled to him. Without energy, it took her a few minutes to accomplish the mundane task. She gazed upon the peaceful unmoving face of her lover, and began to cry.


	25. Chapter 25

Shattered

Chapter XXV

Krystal sat in tears, hovering over the unmoving form of her lover and life. He had died to save her, because she was not quick enough. The vixen felt a deep self-loathing begin to quicken inside her furred breast. She had come here only to end up getting him killed. To compound on her suffering, he had retrieved his memories and had talked to her. It was a bittersweet end, more along the lines sour then bitter, the corrosive irony was not lost on her.

Krystal cradled his head, all too reminiscent of herself in that underwater base on Aquas. Yet something was fundamentally different here, a concealed thought nagged the vixen. There was a thing here she was not grasping. But what was it? And then it hit her like a runaway freight train. If Alex was truly dead, she would be back in the real world, instead she was still in his mindscape. That could only mean one thing...HE WAS STILL ALIVE!

She grabbed his head and shook him thunderously, and screamed into his ear. The response was somewhat unexpected...and comical. She felt a hand throw her bodily away and a loud voice cry out, "JEEZUS!" He painfully sat up and looked to her angrily. "God woman, I didn't think your voice could be louder than a banshee's." He muttered with an amused tone. "Seriously, some asshole throws me across the room and I can't even take a nap." He scolded.

"B-but...I...uh...it...slam...you...dead." Krystal stuttered, incoherently wringing her paws in embarrassment. She was happy he was alive, but had not expected this.

"Did you even check?" He wondered aloud.

"...no."

"..."

"What?"

"Really?"

"It threw you into a wall!" She retorted sullenly, suddenly getting an urge to send him back to the grave.

"And...this is all in my head, how exactly would that kill me?" He asked her with a grin that made her want to smack him upside the head, so that's exactly what she did. "OW! What the hell was that for?" He demanded, massaging his wounded head.

"For being an ass!" She growled, but it was more playful then genuine anger. She was just too happy to see him not dead that's she couldn't find the energy to stay mad.

"Well I'm a living ass!" He teased, sticking out a tongue rudely.

"Oh yeah?" She said quietly, building up to something. "Well not for long!" She yipped, tackling him to the ground and seizing his lips with her own as she sat in his lap, tail swinging hazardously with glee.

"Mmmrph!" He mumbled through sealed lips in surprise. She did not release him until she was satisfied, many long minutes later. "That was supposed to kill me?" He asked mockingly.

"No, but I could use it to suffocate you!" She warned dangerously, making to leap at him again.

"Okay! Okay! Okay! Point taken." He said quickly to the fiery vixen sitting on him. They sat there in companionable silence, until Alex said the next obvious question. "So...I don't suppose you know how to get us back?"

The vixen's grin slid of her face. "Well... It has kinda been awhile." She replied sheepishly. Needless to say, Alex was not amused.

"..."

"What?" Krystal demanded blushing profusely, ears splayed back. "It has been a long time okay, just give me a minute!" She snapped.

"Fine, fine." Alex placated. "(Must be that time of the month.)" He uttered under his breath sullenly.

"What was that dear?" she asked, way too sweetly, turning to him with burning emerald eyes and showcasing her sharp...sharp, needle teeth. (Did I mention they were sharp)?

"Nothing, absolutely nothing." He squeaked, doing his best to inconspicuously distance himself from the vixen in his lap, all he accomplished was making her lean into him heavily.

"Are you sure?" She asked in a singsongy and pleasant voice that also dripped with...menace. She snuggled up to him and looked up into his eyes.

"One hundred percent! Yep, nothing said here! Did I mention that I love you?" Alex asked, cringing ever so slightly, waiting for a demise of his own design to crash down upon him.

But it seemed it would be postponed. "I remember how to get out!" Krystal shouted suddenly, causing Alex to try to get away from her, dragging his wounded body across the floor, at least until he comprehended her words.

"Oh you did?" Alex chuckled suspiciously from his place on the floor several feet away from her. "Heh, heh, that's what I thought you said...yeah." He finished lamely.

She just smiled at him and helped him back up to a sitting position. She then delicately and affectionately wrapped her warm padded paws on his head. The velvety texture felt fantastic on his bruised brow. "Now, do as I instruct." He nodded in understanding, back to the serious business, jokes postponed until he could return to normalcy. "Breath slowly, in and out, calm your heart. Focus on the sound of my voice." Her tone become hypnotic, drawing his full attention and making him drowsy. Remember where we are, now imagine that you are awake, and back in the hospital. You room is bright and crowded. All your friends are there, Fox, Falco, Peppy, Slippy, Fara, Miyu, Fay, Lupa, and Penelope. They are all waiting for you, all you have to do, is wake up."

-

Alex jolted awake...or at least he would have if there weren't four people holding him down. He swiveled his head back and forth to identify his surroundings and who in the hell was holding him. "Fox, Falco, Doctors...why are you touching me?" He asked smoothly. Krystal had opened her eyes and removed her paws from his head, going to the side to watch their interaction closely.

"Because you were flailing like a lun-!" Falco exclaimed, and then before he could continue his rant he froze mid-squawk. "Wait a minute; did you just call us out by name?"

"Yep." Alex replied with a winning smile.

"So...you are yourself again?" Fox asked slowly, hoping to hear the confirmation they all wanted to hear.

"So it would seem Fox." Alex chuckled lightly in a warm familiar tone; the one everyone had head a dozen times before his recent condition.

The orange furred vulpine stared at his friend quietly for a moment until he lifted him up in a bear-like hug, his legs the only part of him still connected to the bed. "Damn! Glad to have you back man!"

"Spine...chest...pain." He grunted, Fox unknowingly hurting the newly returned human.

When he registered what was being forced out of air deprived lungs, Fox let go and backed up rubbing the back of his furred head. "Whoops, sorry man, I forgot."

"No...Problem...it's...okay." Alex gasped out, clutching his chest closely. "I didn't want to breathe anyways." He muttered under his breath, forgetting that everyone in the room had much better hearing then, a wave of snickering made him raise his head with mock anger. "Really? First thing I come back to is a half-assed strangulation and mocking laughter, I should have stayed amnesiac." He muttered sullenly, and moved to get off the bed, but only succeeding in falling off the bed. He sat up as the others watched in worry and looked to his missing arm. "Huh…forgot about that." He mumbled softly. He then got really quiet, sitting there on the floor staring at his missing limb. They all stood there, not knowing how to console him.

It was Fara and Fay who swooped in to save the day. Both girls crouched down next to him and began to talk, soothing his stressed psyche with words of affection. This was something that a guy could not help fix, so Fox and the others left the room to talk to Penelope and Luopa, filling them in on the news, and intending to talk to the human when he was better. Krystal stayed on the side lines with Miyu, there they conversed.

"How bad was it?" Miyu inquired, playing with her tail idly and watching Alex with her predatory feline eyes. The golden orbs were more concerned than anything else.

"It was….bad." Krystal replied with a sigh and shudder. The things she saw would haunt her for a long time to come, but it was worth it to get Alex back to normal. If she had to she would do it again with absolutely no hesitation. This man who was currently sitting on the floor of the hospital was her life as much as she was his. "But I would still do it all again."

Miyu nodded several times, "I know you would, the human has grown on us quite a bit huh?"

"I think more than just a bit." Krystal watched him as he was smiling and laughing with the girls now, Alex was a strong man, pushing through so much suffering and brushing it off like leaves in the wind. "Much more."

Alex chuckled heartily at what Fay and Fara were telling him. "Poor Falco, I'll be sure to tease him extra hard when I get the chance." Both woman laughed at his oath and gave him another hug. He felt the warm fuzzy bodies as they covered him; it reminded him of that time that seemed like forever ago, back in his room when a similar event had occurred. These women were always there to bail his poor ass out. Time and time again they put his broken-self back together again, Alex hadn't the faintest idea where he would be now without them and the thought filled him with dread "You girls are the best!" he exclaimed, squeezing them tightly and making sure they knew how much he appreciated their support.

They both flushed in embarrassment, unused to the flattery. "We haven't done that much." Fay mumbled bashfully. "We've hardly done anything in fact. It was Krystal who did all the work saving your life. All we managed to do was help after the hard part was over."

"And I haven't even been around as long as she has, I haven't done anything." Fara added looking ashamed of herself for some reason.

There downplaying of their own roles infuriated Alex beyond belief. How could they not see that everyone and everything they did was important? "Never say that, not as long as I live do I want to hear you consider yourselves useless." He scolded, not with an angry tone, but with a meaningful one. "Every task no matter how small is important. What you two did, comforting me, is something I will always be thankful for." He put his remaining hand on Fara's shoulder. "It doesn't matter how long you have been around, what matters is what you do with the time you had. And what you have accomplished in that time is extraordinary! **You **helped Fox and the others fight in the skies above Venom itself, and after that **you** participated in the raid to free yours truly. I don't think that is nothing."

Fara stared at Alex and kissed him on the cheek. His words warmed her heart and soul equally. He was such a kind man. His words always seemed to brighten her mood and make her see what was important. If he had died the universe would have become a much darker place. Thankfully that did not happen and now they could all be happy, (right after they find that bastard ape and free him of the luxury of breathing). "Thank you look at me, being comforted by the man I was comforting." She chuckled mirthfully, the vibrations resonating in his chest from their close contact.

He laughed along with her and kissed her russet red snout, surprising her and making her presumably go red under her fur. "There's nothing wrong with that, we help each other, that's how life works, without cooperation and love, life becomes meaningless."

She looked down hiding her face and nuzzling into his chest at the same time. All she wanted at the moment was to snuggle up to him. She could hear his heart beating at a regular pace and inside his warm chest, the pleasant noise and warmth lulling her off to sleep. Soon she was snoring quietly causing Alex to grin happily. It was good to see that one of them had been sorted out. He turned to regard Fay. The Border collie was looking everywhere but at him. "Fay…" He called gently making her look at him. "Do I have to give you the same speech?" he asked with a wry smile.

She shook her head in denial and brushed her fur with her paws nervously. "No."

"What's wrong?" He asked, something was bothering her and he aimed to find out.

"I thought that you weren't going to come back this time." she sniffled and wiper her eyes. The collie was pretty shook up it seemed, and he had just the thing to fix that. Alex used his hand to gently scratch the canine behind her floppy left ear. And wouldn't you know, she stopped whining and began to nuzzle into his hand. One of her legs was kicking reflexively as she closed her eyes and calmed her breathing; soon she joined Fara in the realm of unconsciousness.

After that he looked to Miyu and Krystal, Giving them both his most persuasive smile. Miyu caved in first. "Why the hell not?" She shrugged and moved to join them, leaning on Alex's side and shimmying close to lay her head on his shoulder. Krystal stared into his eyes as he looked at her smiling broadly, she smiled back and laid on his opposite side, the one with the missing arm, and wrapped her fuzzy mitts around everyone.

The group lay together on the floor by his bed and had the most restful and content slumber that any one of them could remember.


	26. Chapter 26

Shattered

Epilogue: _Mended_

**Two weeks Later**

Alex sat in the hospital bed; he was staring at the black bionic that replaced his missing left arm. The doctors had custom crafted it yesterday and installed it last night. It was a long and painful process. They had to go off what they knew about human skeletal and muscular data. He had to admit they did a fantastic job; it was a glossy smooth obsidian color and looked close enough to a regular arm that he could almost forget it was counterfeit. The only downside was that he could not feel anything with it. But it was a small price to pay to be able to have two hands again.

He sighed and drew his gaze away from his new robotic limb and to the window of his room. Eric Liedman had gone into hiding. General Pepper had called a galaxy wide manhunt but had not found him. Whenever he thought about he got a sick feeling in his gut_. 'What was that monster doing?' _ He dreaded to think if the ape somehow got the ability to create those evil machines, what he would do to Lylat. This place had become the home he lost, it still hurt to remember that they were gone. His entire race eradicated, he was the last. When he died, so would his race, fading into galactic ambiguity.

"Watcha thinking about?" A kind feminine voice called out from behind him.

And there was the reason he was not afraid, or rather one of the many reasons. Smiling, he turned to the cobalt vixen sitting in the chair beside his bed. She had fallen asleep with a book in her lap snoring softly in the quiet chamber; he had burned the image in his mind before looking out the window.

Krystal, the fuzzy blue woman that had saved his life and his soul, and had been kind enough to fall in love with him, she was the most important person in his life. Without her or the others he would have ended it all along time ago. "Just thinking, it has been quite the journey hasn't Krys?" He said with a distant tone full of emotion.

She stood up and sat beside him on the bed, leaning onto his shoulder and wrapping him in a hug. "It has, and I would do it all over again, every single part." She replied with a sweet tone, licking his cheek affectionately and enfolding her tail around his chest.

"Would you really?' He asked with a devious smile, turning to look at her with his golden eyes. "Every moment?"

"Without a lick of hesitation." She said firmly backing up her statement with another lick, this time on the mouth.

He chuckled and wrapped her in his arms, the metallic one on her shoulder. "I would too Krystal, through all the suffering pain and heartache, I would do it all again. For along with that, there was something more, something amazing, something…better."

"What?" She asked.

'You." He whispered softly, giving her a peck on the bridge of her muzzle and looking deep into her pools of molten emerald. "You."

Her eyes slowly began to shine and she tackled him into the sheets kissing him so roughly that he could feel her tongue near his throat. They lay on the bed for hours, simply enjoying each other's closeness. But alas, it could not go on forever. Today was his last day in the hospital, all of his wounds have been healed, but they would leave scars upon his body and mind. Alex could care less, with Krystal's and the other's help he could pass any challenge, any obstacle. All he wanted now was to spend time with his family, talk with the gang and play with Penelope. He wanted to live now, no more _suffering_, no more _loss,_ no more _pain_, just the _happiness he_ _deserved._

The only thing that told him it would not last was the fact that Eric was still out there. But when Alex found him, he would let the crazed ape join his comrades in death. Then he could rest easy, knowing that Lylat and his friends were safe. The fight was far from over; there were many threats out in the galaxy. Some no doubt more vile and sinister then even the necromorph plague.

But, for now he would push all his worries to the side. He had a very important question to ask. He looked down to Krystal who was dozing contentedly on his chest, ears flicking to the beat of his heart. "Krys." He said tenderly, making her open her eyes and look up.

"Yes Alex?'

"Would you do me the honor of becoming my wife?" He asked.

Her eyes flashed and she squeezed him tighter, placing her muzzle vertically on his chest, with her body atop his. "Yes Alex." She replied before beginning to fall asleep once more.

He didn't respond, he just drifted off to sleep alongside his fiancé, tomorrow was a new day, and for once, he was looking forward to it.


End file.
